


Through the Wall

by AANerd



Category: Shingeki no Kyojin | Attack on Titan
Genre: Anime Spoilers, Bad Puns, Bottom Levi (Shingeki no Kyojin), But they switch, Eren Is a Little Shit, Fish Puns, Human shifting, Humor, M/M, Manga Spoilers, Mutual Pining, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, POV Third Person, Porn with Feelings, References to Canon, Shapeshifting, Shark Levi, Slow Build, Slow Burn, Top Eren Yeager, axolotl Armin, cause that's more fun, i try but don't come here for accurate Marine Science, merman au, merman eren, so uh...merman sex, swordfish mikasa
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-07-11
Updated: 2019-01-23
Packaged: 2019-06-09 00:33:54
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 10
Words: 31,537
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15255474
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AANerd/pseuds/AANerd
Summary: “Come on Levi, I thought you wanted to eat me…?”Better summary [but with a few spoilers kinda]





	1. Brainless sponge

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dedicated to **nopunnofun**  
>  Thank you for always being my sounding board <3

_The Great Maria coral reef._

A soft splash of water over the rim of it, sent tiny droplets up in the air, flying to soak in the reflection of the moonlight. By the time gravity called them back, there was a meek thud, followed by a sound of slowly flowing water, telling of a slippery body, carefully making contact with a wet, stony surface. Calm breathes and an expectant silence, had filled the next few moments, disrupted only by an occasional wave from the open ocean hitting the reef edge, as sharp ears wiggled, hoping dearly to not sense any sort of noise or movement coming from the depths of it. The freeze lasted as long as it took for the water ripples to smooth out again, and before long, there was another splash, this time foaming up the other side of the coral barrier.

 _I made it._ Bioluminescent eyes, lit up with a bright green, a faint, flickering halo appearing around the young merman's face, as he barely contained his excitement. Still, he had to hold his breathe in a little longer , listening one last time for any signs of commotion from downstairs, feeling like if he had just blinked a bit more intensely, he would see the bubbly indicators of someone swimming up, to stop him from pursuing the adventure he so carefully planned for tonight. The breathe that he kept in his throat, as he slowly inched away from the reef, ended up being blown into the salty water in giddy relief, before he eagerly dived forward into the open ocean.

He truly made it, he thought as he spiraled through the waves. Just for a few hours, he escaped the circle prison of Wall Maria. Another smile broke its way across his face, and he launched his body out of the water, drawing a precise arc in the air with his form, the ocean following his path and supporting his splendor, by sending little gemstone-like streaks after him. He finished the jump with uncharacteristic clumsiness, his back hitting the surface first, and he squeezed his eyes at the stinging contact. His own tail was the cause of the distraction. Leaning back, he let himself weightlessly float over the waves, the coldness of the ocean soothing his impacted skin, as he lifted his tail high up in the air, for inspection. Just like it was the case with the sun, the light from the moon behaved differently on the surface, than it did when observed from underwater. His eyes curiously followed, as the whiteness of it shimmered down his scales. It was the first time the merman was outside of the reef during nighttime, the reason for it being, that hopefully, this would also be the first time he would not get dragged back to the lagoon, by the Royal search party sent out by his parents. Everyone should be asleep right now, even the guards that were not supposed to be. He flapped his tail lazily... Left... Right... The deep darkness of the night in the open sea, created stark shadows behind the muddy greens and caribbean blues of his caudal fin, both hues slowly fading as they progressed upwards, giving way to sand colored flesh, littered with specks of coralline algae, in every shade of purple, only to turn into ocean color again, at the pointy tip of his ears. Then, as a contrast to all the dark, the intense, bright circle dipping halfway into the water, managed to bring out the faint, salmon-pink mist enveloping his tail, more than the merman had wanted too. Looking behind himself, it seemed like he had a small fleet of just barely visible jellyfish trailing after him at all times, and he flapped his tail, doubling his speed for a quick moment, fruitlessly trying to shake them away. They weren’t going anywhere. Just as many other changes that his body went through in the past year, this annoying pink dazzle, was meant to clearly signify his fleeting adolescence.

He swam swiftly, taking on the waves and ripping them in two, as he tested his speed, taking note of the effortless gliding of his muscles through the water. He had grown, got stronger and as he just confirmed it now, he was definitely faster too. All of this deserved nothing but a frown though, and a narrowing of bright blue eyebrows, as he thought about how all these developments would just get wasted away in the small enclosure that was his lagoon... _Paradis_ , he frowned as he sighed out, sending air bubbles through the water once more - this time ones of frustration. The kingdom of Paradis, the place he called home, and that was admittedly exactly that, a rich and beautiful haven built for the coexistence of the merfolk and a few other species of smaller sea creatures, all of which lived in peace with each other, thanks to their shared diet preferences consisting of plant life. It was a lively society of skilled gardeners and gatherers, the vivid fauna blooming at all times of the year, reflecting the expert mastery of the antique knowledge of land cultivation and floriculture, that has been in their hands for countless centuries. Everyone learnt the secrets of it at one point in their life, but it was only meant to be put into practice when one reaches full adulthood, keeping the consumption and replenishment of nature's resources in balance. Thus, this paradise came with a price, which was mostly one of boredom for the youngest generation. Adding to that, the toll paid for safety, meant that no creature was allowed out of the confines of the 50m wall, that encircled their habitat. Especially not him – Eren, the prince and heir of the merkingdom. He grimaced again. The story of the why and how was drilled into his mind, he had heard the tale countless times, from his parents, as well as from other elders on the castle, his father’s counselors and his mother’s court ladies. The story of the brave Scouting Legion, the small but fiery royal army, that was sent out to a dangerous expedition, seeking out a suitable place for the increasingly endangered merpopulation. A better place than the half open lagoon they used to inhabit before. How the Legion came across an inactive volcano in the ocean, and how half of them spent years eroding the inside of it, using the growth of various plants to break through the rocky formation, while the other half of the army spent equally as much time promoting algae growth, helping them calcify, until they formed a coral wall, all around the eroding volcano. When the volcano finally sank bellow sea levels and the rim of the reef around it reached above the water surface, a small lagoon emerged in the middle of it and the merkingdom of Paradis took no time to relocate and has been living in the cocoon of it ever since. The place was specifically chosen for it’s tropic temperatures but also for its distance from predators, both in humans and sea creature form, the mixed dna of merpeople, as well as the position of their previous home, leaving them vulnerable to each of the two. While fishermen weren’t after them specifically, it had been more than a few occasions of bycatch, younger merchildren getting tangled into nets and dragged away unintentionally, their small, weak bodies not giving them any fighting chances against the pull of the tightly woven silicone threads. As for marine life, whales were the ones to never think twice about devouring his kind, small or big, their enormous mouths sucked in everything in sight. They were the number one cause for the high death toll the Scouting Legion had suffered during the building of the wall. Then there were the sharks. The merman giggled. Their relationship with the beasts could’ve been considered comical, if it hadn’t usually ended up in tragedy. Truth be told, he had never actually encountered one, but he heard stories from previous generations, old enough to remember the days outside the circle reef. How every shark-merfolk meeting was one of pure confusion, the hybrid nature of fish and human leaving the predators questioning, if the wiggly being before them was prey or not. Merfolk were taught from young age, to never put a shark’s scent to a test in such occasions, as hunger and sometimes just plain annoyance would provoke the beast to attack. That is why their wall was needed, the young merman huffed in defeat, as he continued to swim tirelessly through the waves. They needed to bring their population numbers up again, they needed to help their own species to survive, and to do that, they has to protect themselves from anyone who was a danger to their mission... Humans, whales and sharks...

SHARKS!

Neon green eyes widened in panic. It seemed to have been an instinctual reaction, to the image of a faint fin outline poking out above the water surface, every time a wave subsided. It was becoming alarmingly clearer with the merman’s every blink. But, it only took a single, deep breathe intake, before a smile tugged on the left corner of his lips, as he gathered himself. The fear that temporarily froze his bloodstream into stillness, was starting to slowly flow with warmth again, getting overpowered by the adrenaline born from pure curiosity. He have _indeed_ never seen a shark before.

Instead of twisting around and bolting away from the danger, the merman thought for a second, before letting himself sink gracefully below the surface, watching in slow-motion, as the grey triangle disappeared, the view getting blurred just for the moment it took for the air to replace water. Jade eyes flickered, increasing the intensity of their beam, as they adjusted, a breath stopping in the merman’s throat, as he came face to face with the deep, steel glare of the monster that plagued the stories of his childhood. Noticing how the beast stopped, obviously unsure what to make of the strange creature and it’s even stranger behaviour, the half-fish smiled. Prey was supposed to run away... _But I am not prey_ , he thought, as anticipation flowed in the air-filled bubbles around them, created by their previous movements and the wait of what could be their next one. He decided to speak before they could burst.

“Hi, my name is Eren. “ A slow backward movement of his tail, shifted him a smidgen closer to the grey jaws, that were luckily still closed shut. “What’s your name? “

There was no answer.

Eren dared to lean in a bit more, enough to see himself in the terrifying orbs that were the eyes of the shark, as black as the depth of the ocean underneath them, and to Eren, as mysterious as the sky above in the human land. Maybe the creature could not even understand him.

“You’re awfully ugly.” The merman commented, testing his theory with a small chuckle. Immediately, there was a wave sent by the sharp, heavy breathe of the beast, hitting him over the face and disappearing behind his ears, making his brown locks rustle as it passed through his hair. He felt the urge to reach out, as his heart thumped loudly in his chest, fascination and fear mingling together, enough for him to forget what was rational for a second. But common sense prevailed, and he kept his arms close to his sides, as he observed the sharks breathing grow a bit louder and more angrier. It seemed like no talking would occur today at this patch of the ocean. Before sharp teeth could mark the start of the end of his still very young life, Eren launched his tail forward, slapping the edges of it, flat across the shark's eyes, temporarily blinding it, and surely confusing the hell out of it,  as he swam down and bellow its enormous head, intending to disappear in the nearest coral tunnel he could find. He could do it, he thought, sharks were fast, but Eren’s lightweight body, propelled with human arms and fish flippers, were surely faster. _Hopefully._ He launched himself through the thick water, and just as his muscles flexed from the first effort, there was a painful sting, traveling from the tip of his tail through his entire body. It ended its journey in the merman’s mouth, forcing Eren to clench his teeth. But there was no time for damage checks, as he continued to frantically swim down, willing himself to not halt his movements, in order to look back.

Floating in frozen stillness, dark eyes watched after a trail of thin blood, twisting through the water like unattached seaweed. Small side fins extended, and large muscle groups shifted and shrunk, the beast not taking longer than two blinks, to take the resemblance of a human from the waist up.

 _That son of a nereid._ The now half human, half shark, grumbled as he plucked out a single fish scale out of his mouth. In its freaked out flapping, the merman’s tail managed to graze over one of the shark’s front teeth, somehow getting stuck on it and ripped off, as the fishman swam forward in full force.

The human hands of the half beast, held the thin, oval, translucent piece, up towards the moonlight. The brightness hit it with an unexpected strength, and it shimmered, tiny specks of color turning from green, to blue, and even a faintly pink hue, as cold fingers shifted it from side to side.

 _Eren huh?_ He placed the scale flat in his palm, closing the rest of his hand gently around it. _What a brainless sponge._ The shark-man mumbled to himself, narrowing his eyes, as he resorted to cutting tonight’s hunt short, the slap he received, still making him feel like he had something in his eye.

A faintly tingling emerald glow, watched the whole scene unfold, from the concealed hollow of a dark coral labyrinth.

 _I...take back the ugly remark_ , the merman noted, with wide eyes.

 


	2. Stupid fry

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Welcome to another chapter of bad fish puns galore!  
> Please drop a few words to let me know how I'm doing so far, I appreciate it super super much! :)

“Eren went outside again. “

 

Just like that, a simple sentence, said so matter-of-factly at breakfast, instead of a good morning, was all it took for absolute hell to break lose.

Eren squeezed his eyes shut, sending an angry puff of breath over the table. “Thank you sword-snitch... “ The irony seeped from his intonation, now glaring tridents at his sister. _She’s not even my real sister, why does she care what I do with my time..._ He noted in fury, but immediately proceeded to regret his thoughts , taking them back, even though they were never actually spoken out loud. _That’s exactly why, you cucumber_ , he reprimanded himself.

Mikasa was just a baby, when she ended up near their old lagoon... The Scouts found her on the ocean floor, unconscious and bleeding and despite her being a half – swordfish, and thus, a dangerous predator that would’ve never been allowed into Paradis, in any other circumstance, the soldiers decided to sneak her inside the castle anyway, in which Grisha - the King himself, had administered care for her injuries. After all, he was always Dr. Grisha first, and King Grisha second. From what they could gather up from Mikasa later, when she came about, it appeared that her parents were attacked by harpooning fisherman, killing her father, while her mother infuriatedly fought the pull, dragging the boat and eventually only the spear for miles before succumbing to the injuries. Mikasa, still only just a few centimeters long, had trailed after her the whole time, trying to use her small, undeveloped sword to carve out the sharp object from her mother’s body, trying futilely to help, but the baby swordfish was too weak and she ended up only injuring herself.

Keeping her was never part of the plan, as by the time she fully recovered, Mikasa grew into a full sword-woman and there was no place for a carnivore in their small kingdom. Soon, she set her fins to the open ocean. But... She kept coming back, all bloody from her night hunts, swimming circles around the coral wall and causing quite the commotion amongst the merpeople of the lagoon. Eren enjoyed it immensely. Despite strong disapproval from the upper echelon of Paradis, Grisha decided to eventually let her stay. That’s who his father was, an old, kind man, himself an adventurer in his youth, which gave him an open mind and a love for all creatures of the deep sea. His mother was not so much different either, ruling over the kingdom, as well as the king too, her fierce personality making her an unapologetic decision maker, and also the person you should not want to cause the wrath of. The news of a predator residing with the royal family was not taken well at first, the worries of the underwatizens admittedly legitimate and rightful. But it didn’t take long for Mikasa to prove as valuable security asset, the Scouts taking her under their shelter, and as time passed, the gloomy swordfish, as she became known, was equally loved within the confines of the stone walls of their castle, as well as outside of it. And Eren himself was smitten with his new play partner, the only one that was able to match the rampant pace of his own nature. They grew inseparable and he truly thought of her as family. But her early experiences made her protective of the one’s she cared for, and Eren often found himself going back and forth between understanding and annoyance. Not to mention she was the only one allowed to hunt outside the walls. This morning, that was double the reason for giving her nasty glares over bowls of seagrassfruit.

Loud yelling broke through his thought bubbles, and Eren directed his eyes towards his mother, long brown hair and purple, shimmering tail, turning into threatening luminance's. He wasn’t brave enough to look away or roll his eyes – he knew if he only just dared to give an impression that he was not listening, his ears would get pulled to unlikely lengths, in order to make him listen.

 _You don’t want me to die, got it,_ he repeated his mother’s words inside his head, as he sighed out. _Fair enough I guess_ , the thoughts were tinted in sadness, and he pressed his lips together, cursing the goddess for giving him such a frantic heartbeat, a blood that coursed too fast and too warm through his body, his muscles fidgeting too much, for an ocean creature that was meant to live in the peaceful silence of the lagoon’s barrier. He hated his mother being distressed over him, he hated his father’s wordless disapproval, and most of all he hated seeing Mikasa, look at him with fear, not for herself, but for the things Eren might do to potentially hurt himself. She looked at him like that a lot, that time when she was taking urchin needles out if his palm many years ago, when she untangled him from the grasp of the kelp trees on the very end of their habitat, and this sunrise too, when Eren came back, swimming slowly through small hisses, as the salty water pinched at his fresh wound.

 _I get it... I’m sorry..._ He whispered.

 

But the guilt lasted as long as anything in the mind of an antsy young adult, and Eren watched it slowly disappear over the horizon, together with the setting sun. He propped his body out of the water as much as he could, with a strengthy tail flap, letting the warm rays of gold caress his shoulders, neck and chest.

“You look like a seal. “ Mikasa said with a small laugh.

They often watched the sunset together, Eren always insisting on seeing Mikasa off to her nightly hunts. It was almost completely dark, and his sister would be on her way soon...much like... He thought back to the scene from yesterday. The eyes of the beast glaring at him from such a close proximity, his own barely successful escape, and the peculiar scene that followed after. He could see it now, how the very human-like hand twirled Eren’s shiny scale between its fingers...

 _He must’ve been curious too... Right?_ Sharks-mans and mermans never really stopped to take time for learning about each other. Maybe Eren was the one, who was meant to change that, maybe the grumpy beasts weren’t that bad after all, maybe... Maybe he was just coming up with excuses to sneak out again.

 

_I’ll be back before Mikasa returns..._

With a quick splash, he jumped the width of the rim, diving below the surface deeper than usual, as he started to swim without looking back. This depth should be enough to not leave a bubbly trail of evidence indicating his path. If he was quick enough... If he could find the beast quick enough, no one would notice his absence.

 

He almost missed the spot where he saw the shark man last night, speeding over that particular patch of water, completely enveloped in his thoughts. The unmistakable atmosphere, that surrounded the eerie silence and the scent of danger, mingling in with the oxygen, was what stopped him from his mindless advancing. That’s when he saw it.

_It was him!_

The dark fin, perched on top of a pale body, a face that didn’t need a jaw to kill... There was no doubt it was the same shark. Eren stared at it, motionless, watching as it swam steadily towards him... And the next to him... Only to pass him completely without as much as a glance.

“Hey! “ The merman turned around to yell after the beast.

Nothing.

“Hey wait! “ He shouted again, starting to chase the tail of it, as the shark seemed to quickly disappear from the merman field of vision.

“I know you can understand me! “ Bravery was running Eren’s mouth, as well as a tinge of offence for being so blatantly ignored.

“I heard you speak my name yesterday! “ He said slightly mocking it, as he swam past the shark. Before the merman could register what he was doing, a dull, strong force collided with his abdominal muscles.

“Ahh” He spurted out all the air out from his lungs.

There was a fury of bubbles, before a face of an angry man emerged from behind them.

 

“Do you have a deathfish, you stupid fry!? “ The man yelled, and Eren rubbed his eyes, still incredulous over the fact that he let a shark bump it’s nose into his stomach. Still taken aback from how the dark haired, silver-eyed half-man materialized from the wild animal and how made Eren’s heart rate speed up just the tiniest bit.

“Do not get in my way ever like that again, or you’ll be going home as seafoam. “ The man threatened, as he moved past the merman, barely avoiding the clash of their shoulders.

But Eren wasn’t having any of it, the desire to pry out a potentially different reaction, or any further reaction in fact, and not let their second encounter end with such a few unpleasant words, drove him to move and he circled the half-shark, letting his tail casually slide over the muscular back of it, noticing them tense at the touch.

“You said my name last night... “ Green eyes now floated above silver, making the half-shark look up, as Eren’s tail swayed above them, in a show off. “You... Took one of my scales. “ The merman paused to observe the reaction.

 _This... Was definitely a different face the man was making right now,_ he thought as he observed the flush of deep coral tint, give life to the pale skin of the man’s cheeks. The merman smiled.

 

“And you slapped me in the face. “ The shark said drily, pushing Eren away.

 

“Did you like it? “ The merman didn’t let himself be shoved away, maintaining a small space between himself and the shark’s face, as he swam steadily backwards, matching the pace of the creature.

 

“Excuse me? “ The half-beast stopped in his tracks for a moment, to raise an eyebrow at the merman.

 

Eren laughed, pressing his palms over his stomach... _For a scary predator, he makes the cutest faces._

 

“My scale... Did you like it? “ It was a genuine inquiry, despite it starting off as an immature teasing. He wondered if the shark was curious about him too, as much as the merman was curious about the beautiful half-human. Even for Eren, this fascination he felt with the deeply steel, menacing eyes and ink black hair, that somehow switched to a single dark top fin when the shark was in full beast mode, was quite weird. He didn’t exactly understand, what drove him to risk the wrath of his family and the possibility of a life sentence in the circle prison of Wall Maria, just in order to get here tonight, in hopes of seeing the shark that could easily kill him if it wanted to, but he just followed his instincts and they told him this is precisely where he needed be right now.

 

_Actually..._

“I have to go... “ He exclaimed suddenly, a tinge of panic washing over him. _The moon already advanced this far across the ocean_ , he thought, the shine of it hitting Eren's eyes, and reminding him, that he was in fact on a strict curfew. Mikasa would be back soon. Without stopping to look back as he swam forward, he took a deep breath in before yelling out his parting sentence, hoping he was still in earshot of the dark-finned man. “I’ll be back tomorrow! “

 

*****

 

The sun shone mercilessly, the warmth of it waving the air, as a couple of colorful tails kept cutting through it, using the movement to splash necessary, cooling water over flesh and scales. One of them a mulled explosion of greens, blues and magentas, pacing more restlessly, than the other one, which was more gentler, in its softly pink and pale yellow hues, as well as in its journey through the air.

Eren watched Armin, his half-axolotl friend in nervous anticipation, as they sat on top of the very eastern arch of Wall Maria. This is what generations of merchildren did all day, Eren thought furrowing his brows at all the sparkling tails perched over the scorching stone of the coral rim. Just lazily splashing their bodies around in the sunlight, as they greeted the sun and waved it goodbye, every day until they were old enough to join the sacred world of an underwater herbalist.

 _That life..._ It wasn’t all that bad, he thought. The merman carried enough curiosity inside himself, for it to be able to expand even to a fascination with plant life. It was something Armin and he shared together, and luckily, one of the privileges of being next in the line for the throne, meant that he could choose the people he wanted on his patch of land in the Royal garden, when the time comes. Still, there must’ve been more to life than spending centuries seeing through the sprouting of plants, getting them picked or letting them wilt away, before you yourself eventually shrivel into the soil you spent so much time caring for. It was another idea, Armin and he had in common.

“Your so shelfish you know that? “ Fluffy, dark-rose fins swayed lightly, as the axolotl laughed. “You are not only lucky enough to have access to the royal garden, but you are also the next king of Paradis! “ Armin spoke, bowing with exaggeration over the stone wall, before the prince.

It was true, Eren smiled half-heartedly back at his friend. In theory he had it better... Way better than many of his peers, but even Armin’s mocking voice was an indication that things weren’t as rosy as they sounded. They both knew, royal responsibilities only meant being buried in leafwork, and endless discussions at unnecessarily luxurious opal tables, mussing about topics that Eren didn’t know and did not care to know about.

“Next time you go out, can you bring me something from outside? Maybe something of his? “ Armin asked and Eren’s face lit up, as a smile split it almost in two. Thank Ymir that the small axolotl was always on his side. Out of everyone nagging him to death about the dangers of the outside, he knew Armin would understand.

“I sure can! “ The merman exclaimed. “In fact, I’m pretty sure _he owes me_ something if his.“ There were a few heartbeats that were quicker than the rest, and again,  Eren coincidentally felt them at the same time, as an image of an icy gaze materialized in his mind.

 _Fuck_. He breathed out, trying to get rid his body of the heat that seemed to suddenly be coming from inside of him, rather than the sun.

“Just try not to lose your tail or your head this time ok?” Armin reminded.

 _I can’t make any promises_ , the merman thought, as he nodded in approval.

 


	3. Smooth Tooth

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello friend! Thank you for reading my little fic! I would super appreciate any feedback from you, as it is awesome to read what you thought of my story :)

They raced to the top.

Eren had never beaten Mikasa to the surface before, not even his recent strength increase was of any help, in gaining advantage over a being that was born to be fast. But he still tried his damn hardest every time, wiggling his body the same way she did, sideways instead of vertically, watching exasperated, as the swordfish swished by, beside him, cutting through the water and leaving him far, far behind every time. It would take a few seconds for a panting merman to catch up, before his amber locks splashed through the surface and into the pre-evening air.

The blood-orange of the setting sun, made their faces shine like they were on fire.

Mikasa spoke without turning her head away from the view. “I know you went away the other night... “ She said calmly, after a few minutes of silent breathe-catching, both of them squinting at the horizon.

Eren’s head spun to the right, “H-how? “ He asked eyes wide, as his heart started to pick up a pace again, feeling the slight panic slowly creep over his chest, “I...I was already in bed... I came back in time... “

_If she tells mom and dad I am done for._

“You smelled different... “ She said furrowing her dark eyebrows, “Like, those green, open-sea algae and... And, something else. “ Mikasa scrunched her nose, focusing in for a few moments, as if she was trying to remember something, but couldn’t. “You smelled the same the other night too.” She concluded.

A thick silence followed, as Eren searched his brain for any good excuse or reason that would serve to defend his nightly shenanigans. The truth was that, there were none. He was scolded a million times, told over and over again about the many potential dangers of venturing outside into the wild oceans on his own, and he still never listened. It was like the meaning behind the words of worry held on, just enough to make him feel temporarily guilty, only to fade away as soon as the memories of how much fun he had, appeared again. The only thing to blame was simply, his own discontent nature. 

“Where were you? “A soft voice broke through the quiet. 

“Out.. “ Eren mumbled, “In the open sea.“ _With sharks._ He didn’t voice that last part loudly, but the feeling of mischief in his belly, curved the corner of his mouth into a smirk. It was that easy for Eren to forget any worries or unfavorable consequences his actions might've caused him or anyone else.

“Did you intend to go tonight too? “ Mikasa inquired, intonation flavored with reprimand. The sun was slowly dispersing into a blue hue, taking it and melting into the sky.

A soundless pressing of lips together, offered an answer, instead of words. 

“I’m going with you. ” The swordfish declared, taking aim towards the eastern edge of the coral rim, in a swift push forward.

“W-what? “ Eren followed after her. "Hey, wait!"

They stopped, as the merman made contact with the cold, stony surface, that indicated the border of their whole world. “Look, I don’t need you to babysit me. “ He said resolutely, looking at his sister and subconsciously mimicking her scowl. Just as all other intelligent creatures of the ocean, Mikasa carried the curse of Ymir in her appearance. With a half-human body, her sword was perched behind her back, as she was forced to use her hands with it, to hunt. It couldn’t have been too much of a hindrance though, Eren thought, his sister looking like she could snap any human or animal in half regardless of size, regardless of tool. There was no doubt, harm would avoid them in a wide circle, while she was beside him...But he didn’t want to depend on anyone. He didn’t want to be tied neither to a person nor a place in order to be safe. “I can look out for myself, and besides you have your own thing to do... Munching on other fish or whatever you do... “ 

Big, dark circles bored into him, unamused, and Eren knew this was not something that would be up for discussion. He clicked his tongue in annoyance “The gravest danger I could get into, is you telling mom... “ He joked, a bit sourly, hoping that, it would not in fact be the case. 

“I won’t tell her, if you let me go with you and ensure for myself, that you won’t get yourself killed or injured. “ Mikasa offered sternly. “... Again. “ She added, remembering the way her brother limped into the castle a night ago. 

“Fine! “ Eren answered, deeming any further reasoning futile, as he propped himself, a bit too forcefully over the rim, swimming away. 

_Here’s to hoping that the shark would not be there tonight._ The merman thought, flipping his body in the water, to look at the moon. _Otherwise I am dead._

They swam near the place in question...Close...But not too close to risk running into a familiar fin, Eren hoped. He knew he wouldn’t be able to deceive Mikasa completely, her sense of smell refined enough to pick out the natural scent of the environment and match it to the one she noticed on Eren.  Because of this, they stayed near by, the merman holding onto this thin part of sea space, to provide enough of a buffer to avoid the meeting, that would surely cause him to be grounded for life.

He got forcefully dragged down to the bottom of the ocean, even before he was able to take a full-circle glance of the area.

“Sharks...” Mikasa whispered, pulling Eren into a shallow coral cave, her eyes flying over the small patch of sea, looking for the source of danger.

_Yeah, sharks...Who could have imagined._ Eren tried not to roll his eyes with sarcasm. Fate was not on his side today. Now Mikasa was surely going to freak out, and give him the a long lesson on being responsible, after which Eren would never be allowed to leave his room again, cause she would surely tell on him, and...

“Levi...” A hushed word, pulled him out of his spiral-like thinking. He looked to the direction it was coming from. It was another quiet murmur of his sister.

“What?” He asked under his breath.

Mikasa pushed out of the cave, enough to lean her elbow on the edges of it, as the shadow of the giant animal passed over them. Her eyes widened with realization. “You have been hanging around _him_?” She asked, a weird, almost comical look on her face, that almost resembled a smile.

“Y-yes?” Eren wasn't sure if that’s the answer she wanted to hear, but he decided lying to her was of no use. Swordfish nose and intuition could clearly not be fooled.

“And how is that going for you?” She asked, very obviously mocking him now.

Before he could give any kind of an answer, she swam out of their hiding place, shaking her head with a small chuckle.

“You’re safe.” Mikasa spoke, not looking back. “Just try not to piss him off too much.” 

The swordfish disappeared leaving a big eyed, confused merman to rack his brain over, what the hell was that supposed to mean. He was going to have a lot of questions for her when they get back home. But for now...An enormous, oval shadow was slowly creeping over him, gradually swallowing the wavy reflection of the sun in the water.

“I didn’t know sharks hunted every night.” The merman was in front of the beast's face in a second. He was looking at it excitedly, eyes shinning with a mischievous glint.

_They don’t,_ the half-shark thought _. So what the hell was I doing here?_

“What do you want?” He decided  to ask the annoying merteen instead, after swatting the white haze of bubbles away, caused by his transformation.

“A lot of things I shouldn’t.” Eren answered honestly, shrugging his shoulders, his enthusiastic expression faltering a little. 

“Maybe you should try not wishing for the wrong things.” Levi noted, approaching the young merman, and circling him slowly. He had enough of this Eren fish, being in his face all the time, and he hoped to show him just how uncomfortable it was, when someone was way too far into your personal space. He tried to present himself as menacing as possible.

“Maybe...Or maybe I should just show everyone that the things I want are not wrong at all.” The merman answered, completely unfazed by the proximity of the shark-man. 

Levi raised an eyebrow. _Huh._

The merman jerked his head up, as if suddenly remembering to focus back to reality, instead of the depthly confines of his own thoughts. “So...How are you enjoying the scale you stole from me? You never answered my question.” He teased, starting his own circular movements, following in the bubbly trail left behind by Levi.

Soon, they were languidly flowing through a spiral created by the wave-like motions of their tails.

_He still going on about that..._

“It is annoyingly bright colored.” Levi answered with a deadpan expression.

“Yet, you decided to keep it.” Eren challenged, the giddiness over having a conversation with a creature he should not be having a talk with, by all the current laws of their lands, was barely contained behind his wide smile.

Levi stopped, idling in the water, as his hair swayed from the remaining force of the waves. Never in his 25 years of life had he seen another creature approach a shark so seemingly oblivious. It was borderline crazy. Never had someone spoke to him so matter-of-factly, and talked back in such an upfront, carefree manner. This fingerling was either very brave, or extremely stupid. Levi would’ve lied if he said he wasn’t a little fascinated. He was left soundlessly looking at bright, green eyes, that seemed to have been running up and down the shark-man’s body, for the thousandth time, in the past half an hour.

“I think you own me something in return.” The merman spoke with the widest, most taunting, all teeth grin, Levi had ever had directed towards himself, the smooth edges of the tiny whites, making him huff, as he rolled his eyes. _Figures,_ he thought as the little annoyance only pushed it's body closer to the half-shark.

_Daring brat_. Levi was unable to help the tug of his lip corners upwards. He was glad it went over the merman’s attention. “I don’t know where you get ideas like that, but I sure as hell don’t owe you shit.” He answered back, not so pleasantly, trying to reclaim his intimidating aura. It only seemed to spur Eren further, as he was now softly chuckling, his hand lifting up and ending spread widely over the upper part of Levi’s chest.

There was an immediate impulse to jerk back, the shark man taking a quick silent breath in, only to realize he hadn’t moved at all, and his body just stood frozen, under the warmth of Eren’s palm. _What in Ymir's name was this weird creature doing?_

“You and me...” The merman spoke, close...Way too close to Levi's face. He could feel the sweet notes of lilac algae, envelop his senses, as the smell of it seemed to float around his head. 

“We should be friends.” The little fish declared, and Levi was once again, caught off guard. A merman and a shark...Friends? He laughed loudly at the thought.

“You should do that more.” The hand that was still softly planted over his torso, moved suddenly, and Levi felt a fingertip poke at the right corner of his mouth. His muscles tensed in preparation to get away...And then, he still didn’t move. Instead, the touch felt like Eren's finger pressed an invisible switch, that set his skin into flames.

“And that too...” Gentle pads shifted to land on the soft of his cheeks, that surely must've been the color of Christmas island crabs by now.

“Get out of my face, smooth tooth.” Eren's hand got swatted away, and the merman pulled back a little, the satisfied smile still not leaving his mouth even for a moment.

“You have some nerve, talking to me like that.” Levi barked, clearing his throat, as he blushed even more at the way his voice cracked, failing to make him sound as resolute as he aimed to come off. It was infuriating that the merman was still grinning like an idiot. 

“And who are you?” Eren approached again to the left of Levi, swimming to his right as soon as the shark-man turned his head towards him. “You owe me at least an answer to one of my questions.” 

“That is really not your business.” The half-shark said, feigning indifference. The merman pressed his lips together, in a half-smile, as his large, green eyes hooded slightly, taking a few nodes down from their intensity. He looked disappointed. _Oh for fucks sake._

“My name is Levi.” He said after a short pause, giving in. This moron risked his life the past few nights to get here, so maybe he shouldn’t be so dismissive of him. Even though he was an annoying flower child of Paradis...And a nosy brat...And had stupidly captivating eyes...

“I have to go.” The shark said suddenly.

“No! Wait!” Eren swam by him, as Levi started to leave.

“Don’t come here again. It's dangerous.” A large tail splashed swiftly, pushing the pale body forward and away. He disappeared into the misty darkness of the deep sea, before Eren was even able to put in a another word of protest.

*****

“Tell me everything.”

Mikasa opened her eyes in a half-haze, a hand lightly shaking her shoulder. Two bioluminescent circles loomed above her.

“Eren...” The sword-woman jumped from the bed, almost colliding with the face of her brother, the eyes illuminating the dark room with a green halo. “Is everything ok? What time is it?” 

“It’s almost dawn.” Eren informed, “I’m fine.” He added, laying down next to his sister. The excitement over the night he just had, not letting him get any shut eye.

She sighed with relief, falling back to the bed and turning away from the offending brightness. “Can whatever you want right now, wait till the sun actually comes out?” Mikasa mumbled, lifting her right arm to rustle the wavy chocolate locks of her little merbrother.

“So...In 20 minutes?” Eren giggled, turning to his stomach to lean on his elbows.

The swordfish joined with a chuckle. “Fine, what is so important?”

“Levi!” Eren exclaimed, voice raising to levels too high for pre-dawn times. 

 

 


	4. Kelp hugger

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello y'all! Finally managed to put together another chapter. We discover a bit more about the mysterious shark-gentleman!  
> As always your comments make my day! <3

“You know, I should punish you by not telling you anything.” Mikasa raised both eyebrows, turning to face her brother. The light of the glowing circles faded a little.

“B-But you said...I wasn’t in any danger!” Eren protested and was shut off, as the swordfish raised a finger, the pad of it ending on a faintly, green-lit forehead.

“You didn’t know that until I told you.” She said, slightly smiling, “You went out and just carelessly approached a shark. A shark Eren...” Her smile faltered a bit, as she shook her head.

The merman shrugged, goofily smiling back in earnest apology. Now that she had put it that way, it did sound fairly irresponsible.

“I...guess you are not a child anymore.” Mikasa flicked a stray lock of hair from Eren’s forehead, before retracting her arm. “I don’t think, I would be able to protect you, even if I would've become your shadow. “ 

“I don’t want you to be my shadow.” Eren reminded softly. 

“I know. “ She admitted with a sigh. Eren knew, that to Mikasa, it didn’t usually matter a whole lot, what he wanted or not wanted, as long as she was able to be there next to him when he needed her, to offer an escape from a tangle of kelp trees or the wrath of a stubborn seashell. Hearing his sister acknowledge his voice in such matters, came to Eren as a surprise. A very welcome one.

“But we are starting sea-defense tomorrow. You need to toughen those teensy muscles.” She added quickly, pinching at the still baby soft flesh of her brother’s bicep.

“Fine...Just stop poking me...” His arm jerked back reflexively, “And I don’t have teensy muscles.” He flexed his arm, patting the small hummock of flesh with his other hand, stretching his chest in over-the-top pride, as he smiled widely.  It took a single poke to ruin his whole image. He giggled  again. _I guess being touchy runs in the family_. “Anyway...about...”  Eren looked to the side and then back, tilting his head.

“About your weird obsession with things every normal merperson knows to avoid...” Mikasa said through a laugh. “What do you want to know?” 

“Everything... Everything you do. H-how do you even know a shark?” _How did you know it won’t hurt me?_ Eren pushed himself up from the bed, folding his tail in a circle, nesting himself comfortably in the middle of it, his ears flapping, opening wider, ready to soak his brain in exciting information 

“Everybody knows Levi. “ Mikasa said, very matter-of-factly, almost bragging.

_I don’t._ Eren thought, disappointment evident in the scrunch of his brows.

Mikasa read him clearly. “Everyone...except the mertizens of Paradis, that is...” She corrected herself, sighing almost unnoticeably, as she rolled to her back again. Eren always wondered if she instinctively missed living in the wilderness, and if she was too, sometimes frustrated with the closed up life, she had chosen to live. He supposed she did, even though she would probably never admit to it.

“He...He does a lot for creatures living underwater. Wildlings especially.” Mikasa continued.

_Wildlings_. A name given to everyone living outside the bubble of their coral kingdom. _They are best to be avoided,_ his mother’s words echoed in his mind. He frowned for a moment, before remembering he was actually having, and should focus back on a pleasant conversation.

“How so?” He asked, lightening up.

“He and his friends...They do a lot for when it comes to keeping the ocean clean and safe...Making it the best it could be for us who depend on it.” She added, a note of respect colouring her voice.

Eren cocked his head to the side again. What could a few shark-people do for the many problems plaguing their ocean? Most of it was caused by conditions they had no control over...Problems coming from the other side of the surface...Unless...

 

_They did it from the human world._

“They...Do it from the human world.”

 

Mikasa's voice mirrored his thoughts. All of her words were hesitant, knowing all too well the reaction they would provoke in Eren's easily captivated mind. It was dangerous enough already, for him to hang outside their safe zone. It was even more dangerous to plant images of someone making contact with humanity, into his careless head. But if he had continued to hang around Levi, which Mikasa was sure was going to be the case, he would have found it out either way.

Eren's eyes went wide, “But if he...If he is a...That means...” The merman’s words came out , as jumbled as his thoughts.

“Yes.” Mikasa confirmed, almost with a whisper. “One of the few.”

_A human shifter_. Eren found it difficult to breathe. _This was so fucking awesome_ , he mumbled to himself, not being able to control his joy. It  was wilder than anything he could have thought up, about Levi.

Human shifting was another part of the curse, that every one of them carried. Yet, if you could, inside of Paradis, it definitely didn’t mean that you should. Amongst all the possible ways to brake the many of its ridiculous laws, willingly shifting to a human was on top of the list of the things one should not do. It was considered to be an act against the kingdom and the whole of marine life...a betrayal of their kind. And not only was that true inside of their little heaven, but to Eren’s knowledge, human shifting was forbidden in all the other kingdoms, even in lawless lands, it was something that was frowned upon.

“B-but how?” Eren had to wonder. How come Mikasa seemed to talk about him with respect, rather than anger or disgust, a common reaction of merpeople, to anyone mentioning human transformation. Becoming one meant becoming the enemy of the ocean.

Mikasa looked up, eyebrows and mouth mirroring each other in a serious expression, “It’s...In any other situation, it would be against the rules to even talk about this, but...Levi... _He went up there to help us._ ” She explained, emphasizing the last part and not caring to hide the small hints of admiration in the tone of her voice.

_To help us, but how co....._ With every answer, the merman’s brain bubbled up with more questions. Lucky for him, his sister spoke further, after letting out small chuckles over the stupid faces he was probably making, without needing to be prompted.

“I don’t know...Or rather, I don’t understand the details.” The swordfish admitted. “The human world...it's too complex for me to grasp fully, but I know Levi has human friends there...Friends that for some reason share our concerns for the well being of marine life. Together, they already did so much in the past couple of years, that Levi managed to slowly gain the support of the majority in other kingdoms. They...We all have a lot of appreciation for his sacrifice.” Mikasa concluded, squeezing her fist into a ball, and placing it over her heart. It was a gesture used by his father’s army, an expression of utmost respect. “That’s why he was never persecuted for his crimes. Although...”

“Let me guess...Mom and dad are still not too fond of him...”  Eren was quick to put together a conclusion.

The swordfish just shrugged her shoulders.

_Predictable._ Well, if nothing else, this was at least one hell of a conversation starter, the merman decided, already plotting the next, soonest possible time he could pull it out and use it.

 

******

 

“I...” Eren desperately racked his mind, “I want to help!” He exclaimed loudly, not entirely sure he meant what he was saying. Nothing he said so far, managed to divert the sharks attention onto himself. Not a huff, not a single shift of pupils...He screamed the words at a stone cold face.

If sharks in animal form were capable of emoting, right now, this one would be laughing in utter mockery. In fact, this imaginary noise quickly became a very real sound, the laughter pushing through the rustled water, together with a familiar, still very... attractive man.

“What would a little kelp huger be able to do? “ Levi challenged, shaking of the smile as he swam past the merman, who immediately circled around to follow after him. The shark-man stopped to turn his head, “Throw flower-crowns at corporate leaders?” He laughed again, continuing to swim ahead.

“Cop-rat...? Eren whispered into his own chin, looking down.

The half-shark shook his head. “Go home fish. Didn’t I tell you, not to come here anymore?”

“Maybe you did, but luckily I have no reason to listen to you”, the merman explained with a biting voice, clearing his throat a moment after, in order to return his tone and demeanor to a more friendly flavor. “What is a cop-rat?” He asked clumsily breaking his tongue over the unfamiliar word. He swam in front, faced to stare inquisitively at Levi. 

There was something in the way the almost offensively bright, gem-like eyes widened, as soon as Levi took a breath in, before intending to speak, that made the half-beast change his mind, and decide, much like the last time, to indulge the little merman, instead of putting his all, into dismissing him as indifferently as possible.

“Corporate leaders,” Levi corrected, enunciating the first word slightly.

“Coperate leaders...” Eren repeated with a self-satisfied smile.

“Cor-po-rate...It is really not that hard.” A smile fought really hard to break over the thin line of Levi’s lips. He did not let it win.

“Cor-po-rate...Corporate....Cor-porate...” The fishman repeated, enough times to earn a glare from Levi. “But what does it mean?” He added quickly after shutting up, swimming alongside an increasingly annoyed and fidgety wildling, their side arms almost touching. 

“The crap that floats in our waters...” The shark-man attempted an explanation, but was cut off immediately.

“It is from Corporate leaders?!” Eren chimed in excitedly, pronouncing each syllable like a robot, rotating his tail in the water, in a way that had him ending up only a few inches from a silver gaze, one which froze on his own for a few magical moments, before returning to its signature scowl.

The merman felt a pressure on each of his shoulders. 

“If I promise to tell you everything right now, will you be able to come the fuck down and stop jumping around like a catch on dry land?” The shark-man warned, more than he asked, “Also, I have told you....Do not put yourself in my way like that...Your...” He stopped himself, face tensing, as it worked to hide the surprise over what had just almost escaped his mouth. “Just...Stay here...” Strong arms, swung the merman through the water with ease, landing him next to Levi, and then pushing him just a little bit further away, “Keep a breathable distance you fucking weirdo...”  Levi threatened again, even though a laugh managed to break through his anger.

_There is no point in asking him to permanently leave me be, is there?_

“Sorry...” Eren said, tone casual but more serious than before. “For some reason, I really feel comfortable being near you...” He shrugged his shoulders, not noticing the way his confession made the shark-man halt just a little, as if there was a hick up in his otherwise seamless swimming.

“About...uh...your question...” Levi, hurried to advance past the merman, starting to talk, in an attempt to shake off this odd feeling, that caused a strange tremble in his belly, much like the rushing sensation of excitement he had on the nights when he was hunting, something that teeter-tottered on the border of pleasant and unnerving, a shiver too intense to pass unnoticed.

So he quickly started to talk, in order to distract...Himself from feeling, and Eren from noticing his reactions.

He thought maybe...if the merman’s obnoxious curiosity gets satisfied, he'd have no more reasons to come here. Maybe if he makes the story really boring and long, the annoying fish would just realize there is nothing worthy going on outside of his home.

 

******

 

He was wrong. 

 

Eren’s eyelashes fluttered, as Levi talked, both creatures aimlessly flowing through the water, side by side, for the past...How many hours? The shark had no idea, but it was surely getting close  to dawn. He covered everything from pollution statistics, to fishing and hunting conventions, the ways humans classified all of their many species, the endless protests he attended, making sure to tell the merman about the equally taxing meetings, that would follow after, with sketchy people called “businessmen” and ill-famed corporate leaders who he despised, the practical and technical sides of running his own organization and every boring bit of dry details he could remember. But long, slightly shimmery eyelashes kept fluttering over huge eyes...So Levi kept talking.

“So you want to build a sanctuary...” Eren chewed over the sharkman’s words. 

“That’s right.” Levi confirmed, with a small nod.

“For whales. In the ocean.” The merman added, repeating what he just heard, obviously conflicted about the idea.

“You have a problem with that?” Levi raised an eyebrow.

“No. It's just...” It was a challenging thing to mull over, Eren realized. The natural enemy of his kind, the cause of great despair for many of the merpeople, and even of Levi’s species itself. The terrifying ocean dwellers...They were apparently in need of help, and Levi wanted to help them. It was a curious thought.

They were resting on a set of flatly cut rocks, just barely peeking out from the water’s surface, the merman splayed out over the entire width of the bigger one, while Levi resorted to only leaning his elbows on the cold surface, body still submerged from the waist down. An occasional wave would promptly wash over him, loudly splashing over his back, stinging him enough to narrow his eyebrows in annoyance, but not enough to get him to join Eren on the top of the stony formation. No...He needed not to be, too close that creature. Not when it was nearly time for the sun to come out from beneath the ocean, not when the lilac-orange hues breaking through the dark of the sky, made the merman’s entire body lit up, like it was covered in fucking gemstones of every colour. Not when Eren’s eyes felt like they were calling for him to come closer... Not wh...

“Levi...?”

Not when it literally made him zone out of the conversation he was currently having...

“Hm?” The shark-man asked, casually, like he didn’t just stood silently staring at the half-man, for goddess knows how long.

A giggle preceded before an answer. “I...I asked you a question?” He didn’t even notice the merman rolling nearer, his messy hair landing left of Levi’s head.

“What?” The shark scooted slightly away. “I’m tired. Haven’t you heard enough?”

 

_But..._

“Don’t you have to be home or something? It’s dawn.” Levi added, fully moving back away from the rocks.

 

_I do,_ Eren thought, with face full of disappointment. “I’ll...I'll be here tomorrow night! You'll be here too right?” Wide eyes, radiated hope, reaching across all the knots that Levi already managed to swim over.

“I will.”, the shark-man said, flipping over and diving face first into the water, the cold, cooling down his burning face. _I cannot fucking believe myself._


	5. Sea snail

A distant, gradually amplifying rumble, smoothed over the water surface, disturbing the peaceful, rhythmic oscillation of its waves, suddenly raising them by a full feet, only to let them calm again, as they travelled away from the source of the noise. A second, deeper, thundering growl followed, and nearby palm-trees rustled their leaves, white feathers dispersing through the air, as a flock of seagulls took off into the sky, the echo scaring away not only those above, but under too, the sound reaching deep among the stems and blossoms of the ocean flora.

Eren watched, as a school of colorful fish, frantically swam away. “Well, fuck you too, then.” He thought, a quick sigh being the only evidence to his disappointment, before he blinked, to will the bad feelings away.

“Next time...” He murmured between a half-smile, squinting against the soft breeze. _It will work next time._

“Oh my go...!” He suddenly squeaked, toppling over the top of the sea rock, on which he was lounging casually a moment ago. Falling down its side, he hit the water back-first, pink-mist adorned tail, flying into the air, as the merman desperately tried to grab onto the slippery stone, with no avail. As he found himself in the cold water, he caught a shadow moving around, with the corner of his eyes. Then, he felt a push, as something lodged itself between his arm and torso.

“You all right?” Came a question, and Eren shook the water away from his face, to see a pair of steel-grey eyes, inspecting him up close. He also became aware of a palm touching his chest, very politely, keeping all other skin to skin contact as minimal as possible.

“You...” It took him a moment to process. “You scared me!” The merman said, immediately bursting into loud laughter. “You can’t just pop out of the water like that ..I...” He turned around completely, getting himself pleasantly pressed between Levi and the stony formation. It was never a secret really, how much he enjoyed the shark’s presence, seeing as he made it his mission to express that, as often as Levi’s patience had allowed him too. He was also famously not shy about physical contact, and yet...Feeling the warm closeness of Levi’s body in such a position, called up an entirely different set feelings from Eren’s head. He reached instinctively, to grab Levi’s hand, the fingers of which were splayed over his chest, just a few moments ago, and with a careful pull, he watched in surprise, as the shark let him place it over his heart again.

“See?” The merman smiled, covering thin fingers with his own. His heart was beating loudly out of his chest. “I could’ve had a heart attack!” He put the back of his arm against his forehead, over- dramatizing the words, to which he only got an eyeroll as a reaction.

The shark pulled away then, with a small cough, putting, as he said, “appropriate” distance between them, and Eren groaned through his giggles, as he struggled to get back up on the small stony island. “I didn’t even see you coming.”

“I'm a shark Eren. That’s kind of my thing.” Levi reminded, condescendingly.“ But more importantly...” The half-shark paused, waiting for Eren to stop sliding all over the damn rock, and finally manage to sit still in one place.

“More importantly...What the fuck were you just doing?” Levi scowled at Eren, but as green eyes returned the gaze, the shark shifted his head to the side.

“What do you mean...I...I fell int...” The merman was cut off instantly.

“Before that, you sea snail!” The shark raised his voice, having to fake annoyance at this point, as he failed to fight against a smile, for a hundredth time since he met this endlessly energetic merman. He knew Eren was playing dumb just to piss him off. _Little bastard._

“Oh!” The fish smiled a bit awkwardly, retracting his neck into his shoulders. “I was uh...Trying to call out to my mate. I thought...”

The truth was Eren had tried this a couple of times by now, inside the permitted limits, that represented the borders of Paradis. He was told to just let his voice go and his destined mate would get the message, but...It had never happened so far. They were at least supposed to meet by now, he was old enough...Slowly getting to old even. But an answer to his frequencies had never came back.

“...I thought to try my luck out-uh-outside...” Eren explained, stumbling over his words a bit. It was not something he found pleasant to talk about.

“You were calling your mate?” The shark asked, seemingly having trouble to grasp what the little fish just said. Eren saw as a crimson hue, slowly swallowed his entire head.

“Yeah, I...Wait...” Moss colored eyes widened, twinkling to a bright green. “Did you...? The merman leaned a bit forward, gaze shrinking to inspect his companion.

“Don’t get any ideas brat.” Levi said, turning his whole body abruptly to the side, and diving into the ocean, only to emerge a moment after, on the other side of the rock. “I just came to see what all the ruckus was about. You scared all of my pray away with your screeching.” He informed, tone tinted with disapproval.

“Oh...right...” Eren’s lips curved downward. “...Sorry...” He added, looking towards the shark with apologetic eyes. But his smile came back, as quickly as it disappeared. “So, what are we doing tonight?” The merman asked, jumping into the water, regaining his full giddiness in a matter of seconds. It seemed like Eren’s had no time to waste on frowning.

Which is why Levi felt a bit hesitant to disappoint him again. “I..uh...I actually have some stuff to do tonight. “ The shark-man informed briefly, knowing all too well the amount of questions, that were probably lining up in the merman’s head, just about now, bracing himself for the best ways to answer them.”

“Oh really...?” Eren’s sounded expectedly displeased. “What stuff? Can I help?”

“It’s, you know...Not-in-ocean stuff...So, no you can’t.” Levi said, shrugging his shoulders.

Eren’s eyes grew two times their size, from the glow that surrounded them. “But, I...I could! If you let me co...” 

“I said you can’t!” The shark's voice rang sharply through Eren’s words. “Look...”, Levi continued in a softer tone, trying to sound as patient, as the merman’s explosive nature required him to be. “How old are you?”

Eren’s stared confused for a moment, before answering. “I’m...78?”

“Right...”Levi nodded with a small smile. “Just barely an adult huh?” He quieted down, taking a silent breath in, before he continued. “I’m 94, in mer-years. That’s 25 in human...” The point he was getting at, was predictably cut off midway, by an impatient fish.

“Human years? That’s... Awesome! How...How old am I? Can you calculate it for me? Please?” Green eyes were dancing all over the place.

“Eren...” The shark tried to enforce some control by using his mildly threatening voice. “That’s not...It's not as fun as you might think it is.”

“What do you mean?” The merman stilled, tilting his head to the side.

“Do you know why I am even counting my years in human time?” Levi’s eyes narrowed.

Eren’s just stared, face turning serious in the expectance of the answer.

“It's because...The more time you spend there...” Levi’s arm raised to point upwards, “The more you become like them. Physically and sometimes I fear, mentally too...The cells in my body, they are...” He stopped, trying to find the suitable wording to describe what he wanted to say, “They are changing...Changing to adapt to my frequent land visits, which not only means that my lifespan is reducing to those of human life, but that it’s entirely possible for me to just...Not be able to come back one day, either because I discover that I can’t breathe underwater anymore, or that I simply cannot  physically shift back.” The shark turned his head to the side. “That’s why I count my lifespan in human time, and that’s why I try to spend as much time in my animal form and...” 

“... That’s why you don’t have any friends...” Eren added quietly, gaze zoning out, as all the individual puzzles comprising Levi’s life, came together to form a picture.

The two of them spent a lot of time together in the past few weeks, Eren using any opportunity to sneak out at night, as he aimed to go sleepless at least two or three times a week. Coupled with Mikasa covering for him, it was enough to not raise any suspicion from his parents or the night guards. He swam with Levi for hours, as the shark guided him through the wilderness of the open ocean, showing him places that were equally beautiful and terrifying, the merman 's heart bursting with envy over the fact, that other creatures got to call these underwater waterfalls, sandfalls, the deep endless caves and scary dark holes in the ground - their home. His mind got lost in exploring the few nearby shipwrecks, and surges of adrenaline, fuelled his curiosity rather than hindered it, every time they had to hide, and watch as dangerous wildlings passed above them. But more than anything, he enjoyed seeing Levi’s face, who despite never mentioning it, was clearly having fun too. It was a little after they met, that Eren had grilled his sister, until she thoroughly explained everything she knew about the mysterious shark, and he learned why Mikasa was so unbothered about, leaving him around Levi that night. The majestic creature Eren dared to call a friend by now, had a reputation, not only for human shifting, but also one of nasty attitude and strength that everyone knew better than to challenge.  This meant that Eren could have frolicked through the waters around Levi’s territory for days, before encountering any sort of danger in form of another predator. No one was stupid enough to intrude. _Expect you_ , Mikasa had to remind Eren of his recklessness. _If he hadn’t shred you to pieces the first time you showed up there, then..._ She said Eren had to have something special to be allowed there, causing the merman’s pride to swell like a puffer fish. _I will be the one to break out barriers_ , he thought to himself silently. But even more so, despite a mutual ocean-wide acceptance of Levi’s actions, Eren noticed that, it seemed like the shark was merely tolerated in many places that they went to, rather than welcomed or praised, which he should have been. The unlikely pair as they were to begin with, a shark and a merman, their natural dynamics putting them more on the enemies spectrum, rather than one of peaceful coexistence, had generated enough odd stares, but that was just a topping on the _human shifter_ whispers, that followed them everywhere. Levi pretended to never hear them, and Eren came to understand the solitary nature of the shark’s life. At least that’s what he thought at the time, that he understood, but now the merman had realized that was just the tip of the iceberg.

A huffed laugh came as a reaction to his clever conclusion. “Thanks. And yeah...I guess you could say that...” The shark admitted. “So that is why you can’t come with me. I am pretty sure the royal highness would feed me to the whales, if I encouraged the Prince of Paradis to turn into a human.” 

“Can I watch at least?” Eren's voice squeaked pleadingly.

“Wha..um...” Nothing coherent came out of Levi’s brain. 

“Please...! I want to see you transform, I'll stand far way, I won’t bother I promise!” Eren took the hesitance, as a sign for maybe.

Levi’s just stood blinking. _How the fuck do I explain this to a fish?_ With a deep redness burning on his skin, and a healthy dose of stutters, he attempted to do so.

“It’s not just that you would bother, but it is also dangerous for you to go out so far and then have to go back alone...Get it?” The shark tried for the less awkward explanation first, knowing already that the answer was no. Eren was daring enough to befriend him, crossing a few kilometers of wild ocean was probably a fun game to him. The scrunching of blue eyebrows, confirmed his thoughts.

“Ok...I have no fucking clue how to explains this to you, but...When one transforms, the tail goes away and well...Other parts appear...” Levi knew sweating underwater was impossible, but his human side surely felt like he was overheating.

“Oh you mean the legs and how your reproductive organs are no longer covered? Yeah they mention that in a passage of criminal law.” Eren announced, as matter-of-factly as ever. “Wait does it hurt?” He added changing his tone quickly.

“Criminal law... That’s...Great....” Levi frowned thinking how schools in Paradis must've equate human shifting to the act of devils. “And no it does not...It's just...” He sighed in exasperation. “Humans wear clothes to cover those up, and well...You can’t really go from fish to clothed human in one stop, so...” He raised an eyebrow wondering if Eren would get the hint. He was only met with an wide, expectant stare.

“...so you come out of the water completely naked, and humans don’t like to be seen naked, understand now?” He finished the explanation in a rush.

“But you are not a human?” The merman added, narrowing his eyebrows.

“I...I kinda am... Especially when I turn into one...” The shark added a bit ironically, even though he couldn’t blame Eren for not being able to grasp the concept of nakedness or the embarrassment humans felt over it. After all, merfolk never wore anything they weren’t born with, expect if it was for ritual decorating. “Remember, I adopted human qualities both mental and physic...”

“So you don’t want me to come, because you don’t want me to see you naked?” Eren exclaimed, annoyance evident in the raise of his voice.

“Yes. Exactly.” The words came out deadpanned under steel eyes, Levi knowing he had most likely not heard the end of it.

“That’s so stupid!” The merman yelled.

“It's...It's really not. “ Levi had to laugh. “Look, it’s a human thing, when I turn into one, I prefer to not be seen without clothes on. That is one of the reasons why I go out in the middle of the night, cause there are no other humans on a beach at such times. Can you...Please just accept that as a fact?” He reached out, to put a hand on an upset merman’s shoulder.

“What a stupid thing...” Eren murmured, “And I am missing out because of...” He shook his head. “Fine.” 

“Great. I am glad that’s sorted.” Levi rolled his eyes at Eren’s pouty face. “I’ll bring you something for your precious understanding, that sounds fair?”

“F-from the human world?” It was all that was needed, for Eren to put his happy face back on.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So I read about this whale that had been calling to his mate on an unusual frequency of 52-hertz, for 20 years. There is a BBC Earth article about it, where you can even hear it, if you are curious. Along with Isayama mentioning Eren would be into metal music, I imagined mer!Eren having a deep growling voice, instead of a beautiful siren song, that would scare away rater than attract. Well, maybe not everyone...
> 
> Anyway, hope you enjoyed this chapter, leave a word or two if you get a chance and thank you for reading <3


	6. Limpet

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello friends! Work has been kicking my ass, but I finally had time to sit down and continue this story! So here is an extra long chapter to make up for your wait!  
> Hope you'll enjoy it! ❀

_The 30th moon..._

Eren stared up at the half circle on the horizon, the ocean splitting it right across the middle, causing its white halo to spread all over the water surface. The light reached to, and ended in brightly jade eyes, barely peeking above the water, mirroring the scene in front of them. Thirty moons had passed, more than a full cycle, and well, thirty suns too, the merman failing to greet the coming of those, his extended late night watches forcing him to often sleep through the first half of the day, much to his mother’s annoyance. But unlike other times, his slowly growing unrest, made his mind filter the nagging out, in order to leave room for the gradually increasing  feelings of worry. Thirty moons had passed, and Levi still hadn’t came back. 

 _What if?_ Eren rustled the water with the shake of his head. _No. He will come back. Tonight. And if not tonight then by tomorrow. For sure._

It was barely a few hours into the thirty-first sun, that Eren stood in front of huge, crystal-blue, axolotl eyes, that widened a bit more, before furrowing at him in disagreement.

The merman sighed. “I have to do it. What if he is stuck there? What if he can’t transform back anymore? What if...” 

“What if _you_ get stuck there too?” Armin leaned closer, trying to get his friend to listen. “What would you even do, if it turns out he can't come back?”

“I...I don’t know. I haven’t thought that far.” The merman looked down at his fidgeting fingers. “I don’t even have a clue how to transform in the first place...Or which shore to go to...But...” He admitted, getting angry at himself for never asking. “I need you help Armin. No one...No one else would understand.” 

A long exhale followed, as the axolotl pinched his nose. “I could... Check in the books. If there is something, you know...About transforming or the closest land masses, it should be in there. But...You'll need to keep watch and...” Armin stopped, to look up at his friend, “If someone finds out, your dad will burn them...And I could end up in a lot of trouble...Or in jail...Or banned...Or...” 

“Armin...As long as I have an single bubble of air in my lungs, I would not let that happen.” Eren ensured, scooting closer, to put a firm grip on his friends shoulder.

The axolotl laughed, little, red, feather-like gills fluttering through the water. “Yeah, says a fish that’s ready to dive head first into a school of piranhas."

*****

Eren swam for a long time, before catching glimpses of vegetation in the distance. His pace left him breathless, but he couldn’t afford to stop, not until he was in completely shallow waters. He was a glowing bait, dashing through the waves, his misty, faintly pink tail-decorations and bright green headlights, mixed into neon light trails, that radiated light through the surface of the ocean, and were even more accentuated  by the dark of the night. _Even the stupidest of predators would not fail to notice me_. So he kept it up, dipping in and poking his head out of the water, as the outline of trees became clearer, and the distance to the ground shorter, until he found himself hitting soft sand with the next sway of his tail. Armin’s maps showed this as the closest land to their lagoon. And according to the many papers attached to the back of those maps, the island of Trost have had a history of being used as a research point, for scientific expeditions in the past century. Along with the fact, that every other piece of land was at least a few moon cycles away, Eren decided to take the gamble and head out to this particular area. He was never more grateful that Armin liked to hoard stuff that didn’t naturally belong to the ocean. Stuff that he collected around the perimeter of their kingdom, and often times came into possession of even more exotic stuff, that the Scouts brought back from their ventures outside of the wall. The axolotl always wanted to take his curiosity past their barriers too, and even past the safety of their world of water, but being repeatedly denied permission from the crown, from dabbling into the taboo of human shifting, he settled with exploring the outside from the inside, the army bringing any foreign items they could find, as well as their own observations, to help Armin assemble a working model of the topography and history of the waters and lands that surrounded them. It was strictly for Scout Legion use, and sharing with civilians, _especially Eren_ , something his mother pointed out to the axolotl repeatedly, was prohibited and punishable by Paradis law.

The merman sighed, as he reached down to touch the sand. It was different from the muddy, deep-water grounds, the tiny particles, lightweight and flowing through his fingers almost with the same consistency, as the water that surrounded it. With a few pushes, his upper body was completely out of the ocean, resting on the shore, and he noticed the sand looked even weirder, where the water hadn’t touched it yet. Still short of breath, wide eyes took in the scenery. A high, stony formation stretched along the beach, obscuring what Eren assumed was the start of a human habitat on the other side. A few big-leaved palm trees, were scattered across the bottom of it, and it wouldn’t differ too much from how parts of the ocean’s looked underwater, expect that this view was way less colorful and well, obviously a lot more drier. In fact, Eren soon realized, his laboured breathing had nothing to do with his tiredness anymore, but rather the quality of the air, he struggled to consume the oxygen from. His eyebrows narrowed,  before he shook his head a few times, to regain his focus. _Ok, let’s do what needs to be done. Intention. I need to move with intention_ , is what all the books on human transformation said. Closing his eyes slowly, with determination sparking up the muscles in his body, he let his mind get flooded with the well-known, menacing gaze, that he was hoping to see very soon, and he smiled, flipping his tail from the water with a groan, and  rolling clumsily on the warm, dry sand. It stuck to his body everywhere, and he felt the unpleasant crinkle between his teeth, as few specks ended up in his mouth. With his heart drumming in his chest, he let his gaze drift downwards. _Did I?_ An involuntary gasp of shock left his lips, as he took in the two new pair of limbs, flesh colored and muscular, as the rest of his body, that as of now, seemed to be lifelessly lying, buried halfway under the light sand. Struggling to take a breath, deep enough to regain enough energy to straighten up, he leaned on his elbows, as he gently lifted one leg, and then the other, both landing on the ground with a dull thud a moment later. He wiggled his toes, feeling the sand scrape the skin in between them. _Well at least they seem to be alive,_ Eren thought with a chuckle, touching the skin like a foreign object, that was way warmer than it was normal for an underwater creature. Even though there were goose bumps running across his body, as he was planted motionless on the beach, completely naked, next to the ocean in the dead of the night, he noticed how every part of him seem to be burning, rather than feeling cold. There was a very strong temptation, the merman’s skin almost aching from the need to just roll over, and cool down in the tide that was almost reaching to him. He grind his teeth to resist it. _I could turn back to a fish again,_ and that’s not what he wanted. _You’ll need some time to get used to the new body and the atmosphere..._ Armin's voice echoed in his brain, through a haze, and Eren found himself unable to keep his eyes open, gathering enough strength just to roll over once more, putting a safe distance between his new body and the water, before drifting off, to unconsciousness or sleep, he wasn’t sure, but there was nothing he could do, expect let it wash over him.

******

_What the hell is going on?_

Angry eyes pressed the red button on a screen, that flashed up for the fifth time in the last half an hour _. I obviously can’t pick up the phone right now, why can’t people take a hint_. But almost as if the damn device heard him, it lit up again, the same unknown number flickering tauntingly on the screen, sending an urge to smash it to pieces, right into Levi’s hand muscles. Whoever this was, they fucking better be calling him, from a house that’s on fire.

“Will you excuse me for a second, it seem like I have an urgent call to answer.” He politely apologized to the man and woman sitting across him, on the opposite side of the table. “Please, enjoy a drink on my behalf while you wait.” Offering a fake smile, he left the table and exited the restaurant, the phone still stubbornly buzzing in his hands. This was not a good look, for someone who was just about to negotiate over possible donations to his project...And he didn’t hold back on that bitterness, as he answered the call.

“Who is it?” He barked, without a hello.

“Mr. Levi Ackerman, am I speaking to the right person?” A very formal, but slightly confused voice inquired from the other side.

“Yes, that’s me.” A half a second of silence followed. “ I am very busy so please could you get to...” 

“The...uh...” Levi could swore he heard a giggle from the background, peaking through the phone static.

“...The one who saves sea animals?” The voice asked and it took every fiber of Levi’s being, to not hang up on the caller right there. But out of pure human courtesy, he kept listening. “A marine biologist, yes that’s me. “ He corrected stiffly, waiting impatiently for further explanations.

“This is the Trost District police department, officer Springer speaking, we have uh...” It was clear the caller struggled to keep a professional attitude, which Levi now wasn’t too surprised about. The small island police were nothing but a bunch of slackers and good-for-nothing-idiots. He had a pleasure of experiencing that personally, on a few occasions. What the hell did they want from him now.

“...a certain Eren Jeager in our custody, claiming he came to find you, from uh...from the sea.”

Levi’s legs suddenly felt like they would give up under him. 

“Do you happen to know this person? He had no ID of any kind on himself...In fact...He had nothing on himself at all. “ There was no mistake this time, that a small chuckle was what reached Levi’s ear. “He was found wondering the promenade along the shore without clothes, claiming...”

But the full human shark, wasn’t listening anymore. “Yes, I’ll...I'll come pick him up...” He mumbled, stopping the officer in his story, before hanging up, as rudely as he had started the conversation. 

“Hanji...I need your help.” He stated concisely a moment later, as he sat in his car, buckling up, with his feet ready to floor the gas pedal, leaving his guests with no further explanations than a _“I’m sorry I have to go.”_  

That brat is going to regret he was ever born.

*****

“Ereeeen”, a loud, worried voice, echoed through the police station, as a high pony tailed person, bounced across the hallway, stopping only to plaster themselves at the wire cage, of a very badly improvised prison cell. A pale, sickly looking man in a blue t-shirt and grey sweatpants, way too big for his frame, sat on the bench, looking confused. “I am so glad you okay.” The person said softly, as the hinge on the cage opened, and the merman was engulfed in a strong embrace, that dragged him up an out the door. 

Too tired to resist or ask questions, he let himself be lead into a small office on the right side of the hallways.

“Levi...!” Eren’s eyes lit up, as he saw the short, dark-haired man standing next to the table. “Who...?” Eren attempted to talk but was stopped by Levi’s expression, that softened only for a moment, before it turned dead serious again. 

“I do not want to hear a single word from you Eren, you hear?” He walked closer inspecting the now human merman, with an angry gaze. “You are in so much trouble mister.”

Eren just stared dumbfounded,  as Levi seemed to act just as weird, as this other person that...The merman looked to the side, staring at the human, that still had an arm across his shoulder. This land creature seemed to have four eyes.

“I am so sorry for causing you trouble officer, I was supposed to watch over Eren, while my friend was away, but I seem to have fallen asleep and...” They started to speak, to the man sitting at the desk.

“I don’t care...” The tall, long faced policeman deadpanned, clearly ready to get this whole  ordeal over with. “Do you have any proof of relation to this person?” 

“Here” Levi offered a stack of documents, that indicated him as a caretaker for a man named Eren Jeager, the few pages long description naming the latter all kinds of crazy, not the kind that would require a hospital, but enough of a crazy for the police officers to not want to deal with him any further. The words were of course, complete gibberish, something any half-trained amateur in medicine would see through in mere seconds, but luckily, local cops were neither the brightest nor did they care too much about anything, that required more than a signature, and a disinterested nodding, accompanied with repeated _I see' s_ and similar empty phrases, that meant nothing would ever be done about your complaint of stolen or damaged property, or obnoxiously loud tourist parties, which was the extent of the crimes committed on Trost Island.

“I see.” The man said, and Levi rolled his eyes. _What do they even receive their paychecks for?_  

“You can go...Just please, don’t let him out on the streets again alone...or naked.” The policeman said, and Levi nodded, grabbing Eren firmly by the bicep and dragging him out, with a Hanji that was still attached to Eren’s other side. 

“Thank you officer Kirstein we won’t!” Hanji yelled, walking through the station entrance, and waving goodbye like the two of them had just picked up their child from daycare,  instead of bailing out a supposedly crazy man from a prison cell.

“We’re going to the beach.” Levi informed with an unwavering tone, placing Eren into the front seat of his car.

“Wha...Levi, wait....” But the door got slammed in his face and Eren jumped, a little shriek leaving his throat. He had no idea what was going on, and he didn’t like this weird cave-house thing that he was just put in, any more than the “hard net” he had spent a few hours in earlier. He shrieked again, as the entrance to the “cave” opened on the other side, and his tense expression loosened only the slightest, when he saw Levi entering through it.

“Stop freaking out, this is just a car. Humans use it to get to places faster, it won’t hurt you.” He said unsympathetically, slamming the door, to which the merman planted his palms over his ears.

“It’s so loud.” Eren complained furrowing his eyebrows. But he didn’t have time to dwell on it, as the entire thing vibrated before starting to move out of nowhere, making the human-fish grab onto the backrest with a scream. 

“I said calm down. I am taking you back to the ocean, you'll feel better in a second.” Levi said not offering even a side glance, as he seemed to push something with his feet that made the crazy contraption go even faster. 

But all fear and tiredness were gone, with the realization he was being taken back to the ocean, and with an angry _No_ , Eren launched himself at Levi, causing the older man to slam on the brakes, a few angry car sirens swooshing pass by them, to Eren’s never ending horror.

He clung tightly to Levi, as they stood still for a few seconds, before the car slowly pulled over, away from the oncoming traffic, finally stopping it’s loud shaking.

“Eren...” Levi spoke, in a slightly calmer voice, not bothering to peal the chocolate haired limpet away from his chest. “I don't know what you are doing here, but your lungs are getting affected by the polluted air right now as we speak. You would need weeks until you would be able to breathe normally, and I am not planning to let you alter your organs that much or struggle for so long for that matter,  so I am taking you back to the ocean now, while the damage is still minimal, and getting your body back to normal, ok?”

“No...” Eren barely whispered, clutching onto Levi’s shirt. He truly did have trouble breathing.

“Are you guys ok?” A muffled sound came from the other side of the car window, the worried face of his colleague and best human friend, smiling faintly at them. _Hanji must've followed behind,_ Levi thought, rolling down the window. They seem to always do that...Have his back like and  following close. He smiled offering reassurance.

“Yes, we just need to get him into the water as soon as pos...” Levi attempted to explain, but was cut off.

“No!” Eren lifted up, tired face staring intently at Levi. “I...I came here to get you. And I am not going back until you are!”

There was a long silence, in which Levi tried to compute the words that had just left the small fish's, failing to understand why would Eren go through such great lengths to get to him.

“What are you talking about? You're...You didn’t have to come after me, I was planning to come back you crazy, crazy fish.” Levi shook his head, completely puzzled.

“Thirty moons and thirty suns...You were gone so long. I was worried...What if...What if you can’t...” Eren’s voice wavered from the exhaustion, no matter how much he tried to put up a brave front. 

“Uhm...I don’t mean to intrude but...You should probably take this discussion somewhere inside. Eren looks terrible. I...I...could give him the serum...” Hanji suggested, stammering words in a rush.

“No serums!” Levi spoke sharply. “He will have as minimal human alterations as possible.” He turned to Eren, whose belly was rising slowly up and down, almost as if he was asleep.“I am taking you back to the ocean. End of discussion.”

“Then,” Eren’s voice was raspy,” Then... I will come back out again, as soon as you leave.” He defied, a cough ending his sentence.

Levi blinked at him in disbelief, before pinching the bridge of his nose. “How are you half-dead and still so fucking stubborn...”

He turned the car on, and swerved it in the opposite direction.

In less than 10 minutes, they were at the front door of his apartment. Carrying the merman in his arms, he plopped him on the sofa, before running to the bathroom.

Hanji kneeled down next to him. “Levi is going to put you in some water, it won’t feel as pleasant as the ocean, but the hydration will bring your fever down.” They placed a gentle hand on the merman’s forehead. “Levi never bragged about making a friend.” 

“And this is why I shouldn’t have made one in the first place...” The man showed up behind them, scooping Eren up and carrying him all the way to the bathroom, dunking him in the water carefully, and fully clothed, before gradually sliding his arms out and letting go.

“How does it feel?” He asked, only to  turn completely beet red, as Eren only tugged on his own clothes as a response. “Right...”

Levi reached into the water, grabbing the hem of Eren’s shirt and clumsily pulling it off the merman. He could genuinely understand just how uncomfortable must’ve they felt on him. Still having his clothes wet would come useful later, as he planned to wrap the merman in them while he drove him to the shore, and well...He winced as his face came close to Eren’s, having to lean into him awkwardly, in order to pull his sweatpants off and out of the water. Fully soaked, the damn thing was unreasonably heavy.

“Better?” Levi asked sitting down on the floor, back leaned on the side of the tub, so his face was away from the completely naked man, soaking in his bathroom. This was not how he thought his day would go.

“Yes,” Eren said through a sigh. “Not good, but better.”

“This is the best you will get, until you let me take you back to where you came from.” Levi grumbled, his anger overcoming his previous flusteredness.“Now...We are going to talk.” He shifted, straightening his back up a bit against the bathtub. “What in the hell made you think it was anything close to a good idea to come here?”

Eren spoke slowly and breathily. “You were gone...For too long. You said only a few suns and yet...” A soft splashing of shifting water interrupted his words, and Levi waited for him to continue, only to turn around in panic a moment later and find Eren’s head entirely under the water. 

He jumped up, grabbing him by the shoulder with one hand, and putting the other under the merman’s head, as he pulled him out, only to find a wet, giggling face, resting in his palm. 

He immediately let go, causing Eren to land in the water with a big splash. “You insufferable brat.” He stood up abruptly, “You can choke here for all I care.” He murmured starting to leave the bathroom.

“Levi! Come on...I’m a fish remember? What did you think  I would drown? Hey stop!” The merman moved forward, pushing half the water out as he moved about, barely managing to catch onto and yank at Levi’s pants.

“What? Are you going to pull my pants down now too? Splash me with water from your flower shaped necktie? What are you circus clown?” Levi spoke bitingly, still standing at the door.

“A what...I....I didn’t catch anything of what you just said.” Eren scrunched his eyebrows, searching for a meaning he could attach to any of those words. 

“That’s right Eren. You don’t.” Levi took a few steps closer, squatting down next to the tub. “You don’t know or understand anything about the human world, yet you came here  out of your own stubborn and selfish reasoning, risking....” Levi stopped to inhale deeply. “I can’t even begin to list all the things that could have happened to you, in the ocean and especially up here...And now you refuse to be reasonable yet again and...” 

“Selfish reasoning?”  Eren cut him off, and Levi stopped his talking, looking at the merman in surprise. It was the first time he ever seen him look hurt or agitated over the sharks words. And Ymir knows he teased and mocked Eren every occasion he could get. 

“I...” He wanted to say something but was not given a chance.

“I’m sorry I cared for your well being and wondered everyday if I'll ever see you again, Mr. I never think about anyone else.“ Eren bit back twice as harshly. 

“I...I was busy here, I didn’t realize how much time had passed...I...” Levi shook his head.”Why am I even explaining this to you? I'm gone as long as I need to be, if it happens that I am not be able to come back, well...” 

“It doesn’t matter right?” Eren’s words were sharp as his expression. “No wonder you don’t have any friends.” He swooshed the water, soaking the shark-man, as he turned away from him.

A heavy silence followed before Levi breathed in to speak up again, but Eren was quicker to fill the quiet once more. “Who cares right? What a little fish in the ocean wants or needs.” He laughed bitterly. “I’ll tell you Levi... Nobody...Nobody does.”

Levi didn’t understand him...Now or anytime for that matter. The prince of Paradis, the future king of the most resource-abundant lagoon in the ocean, a kid that never lacked in anything in his life. What in the hell was he doing here? What right did he have to complain about anything at all? He got some many things wrong, this hot-headed, naive asshole. He had no clue about Levi, or the human world, or even his own world for that matter. And yet for some reason, his words carried through Levi with a degree of relatability. The shark had in fact, contrary to the merman's words, lived solely for others, considering everyone’s lives as a group of merpeople and creatures that needed his help. This however, left no room for individual wishes, not his or anybody else’s, having to always push for, what was best for their species as a whole and for a long term. From the start, he was ready to sacrifice it all, who he was and who he had while he lived underwater, and if the survival of their kind meant that he'd have to give up returning to that life for good, a life he had no actual tangible attachments too anymore, then it was a small price for what could be achieved. But he related to the weight that sat over Eren’s words. He might never understand the reasons behind them, but he knew loneliness when he saw it.

“What do you want?” He asked, lowering his voice to milder notes, but still speaking with determination. 

Eren stubbornly hesitated, pouting for a few long moments before he finally spoke up. “I want to stay here, with you, until I can ensure, you will be able to come back.” 

“And what if I can’t?” Levi asked, his voice not giving up on the tough attitude.

“Then...We'll figure something out. You can’t just come into my life, turn it on its head, and then decide to disappear. I won’t allow it.” Eren’s voice wavered, and Levi was glad his face was turned away.

“I am, uh...” The shark stopped for a small chuckle, “Correct me if I'm wrong but you’re the one who literally forced himself into my schedule. If I remember it correctly, I wanted nothing to do with you.”

“You were just pretending.” Eren said not turning around, as he dropped all of the filters on his tongue, and Levi was shocked into silence once more. 

He stood up and walked out of the bathroom, coming back a few minutes later with a syringe clutched in his right hand. 

“This...” He tapped the merman’s shoulder, prompting him to turn around. “This contains pathogens that are commonly found in the human body. Good ones and bad ones too. It’s a small enough dose to not make you too sick, but enough to shorten the adaption period from weeks to a day or so” He pressed his lips together. “ I will be heading back in a few days. You would need to take this if you wanted to stay here for that long. It may make some things weird for you, when you go back to the water again. It will take a small bite out of your lifespan too. Do you want to stay here that bad?” 

With expression unwavering, Eren nodded.

Levi sighed out. “You truly are a complete idiot. Give me your hand.”


	7. Fingerling

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Have another long-ish chapter, cause I felt like progressing the story a bit more than I had initially planned.   
> Let me know how you liked it, thank you! :)

“So...What kind of deceitful ploy did you came up with this time?” Levi’s voice reverberated somewhere above Eren’s head, and green eyes struggled to force themselves open.  
“Oh sorry, were you asleep?” A gentler voice asked again, and this time Eren shifted, lolling his head backwards, with half-an-eye open, squinting towards where the sound was coming from.   
Levi was moving about in the kitchen, a long row of small, shiny gadgets spread across the three countertops, with the sunshine from the left, providing a bright sheen to their highlights and a soft glow over the silhouette of a man standing in front of them. Eren saw thin fingers, as they reached for a box of something on the shelf above, dissembling it and then taking out a small white bag by the string, before placing that into a flowery mug, that seemed to be steaming.   
The merman straightened his head back up, and rubbed the sleep out of his eyes with both hands, before taking a deep breath to push himself of the sofa. He approached behind Levi, placing his tired head on the smaller man’s shoulder.  
“I was almost sleeping.” He wanted to sound grumpy but the truth was, he didn’t mind being woken up at all. He spent his whole first day in the above-water world, snoozing, waking up to eat and struggle through using a human bathroom, only to doze off as soon as his head hit the soft spongy-thing Levi called a pillow. With his energy levels slowly coming to normal, and the task of breathing becoming easier by the hour, Eren wanted to at least get a few good glimpses into human life while he was here.  
“Do you mind?” Levi scolded him both with words and a raised eyebrow, prompting the younger to move to Levi’s side, instead of leaning on him with all his weight.  
“You truly have a phobia of other beings.” The merman teased.” What is that?” A curious finger pointed to the pretty mug in the shark’s hands.  
“This?” Levi raised his arm, rotating the tiny cuplet a little. “It’s called tea. It’s similar to the herbal drinks you hippies make in the lagoon.”   
Without a word, Eren took the drink from Levi’s grip, and brought it to his face. Leaning into it, he buried his nose over the rim. “Hmm...” The tea was ready to flow into the holes of his nostrils, “It smells amazing! But...I don’t recognize any of the plants.”   
“Thank you Eren. Black tea with your germs is just what I wanted to have this morning.” Levi grumbled, but still took the cup back, bringing it with him to place it on the small glass table, before planting himself on the sofa. Eren lingered in the kitchen, and it took a few moments for a lightbulb to turn on above Levi’s head.  
He sighed. “You want one too?” He asked but was already getting up, suspecting the answer.  
Eren eagerly nodded, as thin fingers ran through the assortment of colorful boxes and dried-herb-filled jars “Let’s see... “,The man tapped through the packages, “What kind of tea would spoiled prince's drink? Ah right...!” Levi grabbed an unopened box, muted red colour on the container, surrounding an oval shaped picture of a bright, rosy plant on it. It seemed to be whirling around in some sort of a white liqud. Eren tilted his head to it.  
“Strawberry and cream”, Levi explained, tone matter-of-factly, “A little strange but sweet, it suits...uhm...” Suddenly he looked very confused, fumbling with the little bag, that seemed to not want to get inside the cup, and instead ended up dunked onto the wooden countertop.  
Eren scrunched his eyebrows together, before a chuckle escaped him. _For a deadly predator, he sure was clumsy._  
“...Someone who never had land-tea before.” Levi continued the sentence after a cough, pouring boiling water into the mug, picking it up, and practically sprinting back to his place on the sofa. This time the merman followed after him, sitting down close, but not too close to earn another scolding. He picked up the mug, strangely enjoying the warm comfort it spread through his palms. The smell was even more appealing than Levi’s drink, and Eren let his eyelids fall, as he breathed in deeply, a small hum escaping his mouth, as he exhaled. Then, green eyes opened to a pair of silver ones staring at him, the man seemingly frozen in mid-air with his own tea suspended halfway between the table and the couch. The merman laughed.  
“Sorry, am I being weird with this tea? Its just that, it smells so good!” Eren giggled, before softening his expression and stretching out his arms. “Here...” He brought the teacup right up to Levi’s face, his fingers accidentally leaning against the man’s lower lip for a moment, causing Eren to back pedal, only for them to touch again as Levi opened his mouth to speak.  
“Yeah... You’re right. Smells...Delicious.” His voice was hushed, almost a whisper, his eyes mimicking Eren’s almost to a t. Then, as if someone had slapped him on the back of his head, Levi turned away, his gaze sharpening to their usual shark-like edge.  
“A-anyway...” He stammered out the first word, “I asked you a question...How did you manage to get up here fish?”  
Eren paused, a sense of irrational disappointment filling his chest, finding himself wishing that whatever this strange moment was that they just shared, would have continued. He sat back, eyes narrowing, his tea almost spilling over the cup, from the way his shoulders bumped into the couch. It wasn’t the first time Levi made him feel like this...This kind of good nervousness, and he wondered where was all this coming from. With half-a-mind still on these thoughts, he remembered to answer the question.  
“Yeah, I uh...” He said , as he began to explain, what to Eren was a fun story, an adventure he knew he would surely be recalling fondly for the rest of his life, despite all the trouble it got him in. A story of how Armin and he, came up with the perfect plan that would excuse Eren for a few days from his parents sight, the supposed “expedition” they were going to together, in the caves on the other side of the lagoon, granting also precious research time for his friend. His excitement rose as he detailed all about Armin’s books and maps, and how they cleverly deduced Levi’s whereabouts, the merman flailing his hands, as he mimicked how he fought the waves and got to the shore in record time, not leaving out the things that went on in his mind as he transformed, or after, as he struggled to breathe, while lying in the sand, examining his new body. Levi shifted his gaze at this, as his cheeks seem to light up. Smiling at the reaction briefly, Eren continued, explaining how he fell asleep and woke up when it was already daylight, sitting in mute shock for a while, as he watched the few humans on the beach, carrying things around before placing them on the sand. “They took some of their fabrics off, so I...” He remembered what Levi told him about clothes, Eren deciding it was best to approach them and ask if they “have some” for him. His narrative halted at this moment, interrupted by a loud “You did what?!” coming from the now small angry man across him. Confused, Eren just shrugged his shoulders, and continued after Levi just waved his hand at him. He told the man how he had looked for him, asking around about the “the person who saves the sea”, and how a lot of people were very dismissive or even frightened of him.  
From annoyed, embarrassed to horrified, Levi’s expressions melted one into another and at the end he settled on just laughing, giving a gentle grip to the merman’s right shoulder, “I am truly amazed that you made it here without getting murdered.”  
Quiet tea sipping followed, interrupted occasionally by Eren’s hesitant, but never-ending list of questions, sighing out exasperatedly, as he got reprimanded for being annoying again, after which it was silence once more.  
The merman watched Levi’s black hair, the edges of it softening out like a halo, as it was backlit by the sunshine from the window, against which the man was sitting now, peacefully reading.   
“Do you not have to work today?” Eren just couldn’t keep quiet...or himself in one place. He stretched his legs, and walked over the room, planting himself on the chair across the shark, gazing at him playfully. There was no response.  
“Levi...” Eren’s fingers ran over the edges of the book.   
“Just, one se...” Levi looked up, to see gently lowered eyelids, a bit of emerald peeking out under them, the merman leaning on his palm, as the other hand, played with the paper of the page he was currently on. Eren definitely didn’t need bioluminescence to make his look something spectacular. “Nevermind...” The shark said putting the book down, that landed with a thud, startling the small fish, and making Levi suppress a chuckle. “No, I don’t have work, till tomorrow morning. What do you want?”   
“Can you...Can you take me out?” Eren asked straightening up, both hands planted in the table.  
“Do I have a choice?” The shark lifted an eyebrow, but still smiled. “Where do you want to go? Somewhere high up maybe so you can see a lot of the world at once? Or... There are these things called amusement pa...”  
“I wanna see the aquarium.” Eren’s expression turned serious. “The place you told me about...Where they keep the whales...”  
The other man's face froze for a moment, looking at Eren for the umpteenth time in these few days, with utter puzzlement. “Why would you wanna do that?” He asked, with a light head shake.  
“I want to know about your job. What is it exactly that you are working for. Cause I don’t...I don’t quite understand it and...” Eren admitted, “I...I want to see for myself.”  
“Out of all the places, you choose the ugliest place on Earth to visit for your brief time here?” Levi wanted to sound annoyed, but the truth was, he couldn’t hide how Eren kept overwhelming him with these small glimpses into the mind, that hid behind his seemingly tirelessly cheerful front. It made his words soften in ways he didn’t knew he was capable of. “Fine”, he said barely above a whisper, “But, you will not freak out in the car this time...Right?” A threatening finger pointed right in between the merman’s pretty eyes.  
“I...I'll try...” Eren spoke slowly through a small laugh.  
“Do not giggle at me. This is serious. My god...To think you didn’t flinch through all the dangers of getting here, but suddenly you shit your pants over an inanimate object?” Levi teased, trying to play on Eren’s fearless ego, and succeeding.  
“I am not scared of it! It just...It's to damn loud!” Eren protested.  
Levi grabbed his keys from the small table, grasping around a sweatshirt clad bicep next, “Well, get used to it fingerling, the human world is nothing but a huge noise machine.”   
*****  
The shark-man wasn’t kidding, Eren thought as they drove through the traffic, an endless row of machines similar to theirs, lining up and all grumbling angrily. Outside on the open wasn’t better either, the ceaseless clamour of people, mixing with various types of music, seemingly coming from everywhere, even though Eren couldn’t see a single instrument being played anywhere in the vicinity. He had so many questions. But he refrained from voicing out more than a few, as he clutched Levi's arm with a strength of a stubborn clamp, the smaller man navigating them swiftly through the crowd. The merman refused to let go, even as Levi came to a stop, pausing to exchange some papers, for...a different kind of paper, with a man in a small box-like structure, a transaction apparently necessary for them to get into the building in front of which they were currently standing.  
“We’re here...” Levi announced, as his eyes darkened.   
Eren stopped, blinking soundlessly while he surveyed the environment that was nothing like he had imagined it. “This?” His voice wavered. His hand slid down from Levi’s upper arm to his fingers, placing his own in between them, as he squeezed the man's hand, in an effort to control the rage that washed over his entire body.  
“But...” A shaky voice spoke as they passed next to a tank, with a single orca whale lying motionless on the ground. “He’s...Is he dying?” Eren asked, voice a mix of fury and heartache.  
“I...I sometimes wish he was.” Levi admitted with an unchanged, emotionless expression. “He’s been alone in here for the past 40 years. I don’t think he saw any other creature from his own species, in all that time.”  
“Why is he on the ground? That’s... That's not normal...” The merman, let go of the Levi, to place two hands on the glass of the prison, that the being was held in for an apparently ungodly amount of time. “Hey! Are you ok?” He tapped gently on the window.  
“He won’t respond to you. Or me. I tried so many times, but he just never answers. I am not sure he even knows how to communicate.” Levi explained, his deadly stare directed towards the see-through wall, Eren thought he might break it with the black of his eyes only. “That...Amongst other things, are symptoms of stress from living in captivity.” He said, turning away   
Eren walked back, following after him, burying his hand in Levi’s again, as they walked further, the older man explaining the conditions of each an every animal, calling them by name, and detailing the unfortunate circumstances that caused them to end up here. From the dolphins with self-inflicted head injuries, to the beluga whales with chipped or missing teeth, to the ones that seemed to neurotically swim in endless repetitive circles. Eren tried to address each one, but there was not much conversation going on, some of them being aggressive, angry, or just completely numb from the lives they were born into and forced to endure till they die.   
“They fight amongst each other.” Levi said, “They bite their cages, or try to break through them with their bodies...”   
Every word he said, was like stab into Eren’s heart. “Can we...Can we please get out?” He felt dizzy, the, by now familiar shortage of breath, taking over him again, as he struggled to make each of his next steps.  
It took a few minutes for them to find their way out.  
“Can you walk for just a bit more?” Levi asked, as they stood out on the daylight again, silver eyes trained on pale green. He needed to get the light back into them somehow.  
Eren just nodded silently, as they started to walk, soft sand replacing the pavement after a few strides, Levi’s pull leading them off and away from the sidewalk. They cut through a patch of tall grass, pushing thin, spiky, bush branches aside, before the view opened to a wide, unpopulated shoreline. The merman looked down at Levi, worry washing through his features.  
“Don’t worry. I didn’t drag you here just to send you back.” The man rolled his eyes. “There...” He pointed a finger at a small cliff.  
They were on top of it even before Eren managed to get any questions in.  
“This....Is how they were supposed to live.” Levi said, squinting his eyes, as he carefully planted himself on the ground.  
“Who...What?” Eren spoke between deep breaths, feeling a bit annoyed that Levi dragged him all that way up here, despite his condition. A finger indicated for him to turn around, and when he did....  
“Ohhh!” Eren exclaimed, eyes widening like the ocean before them, just as a magnificent cetacean landed his massive body in the water, sending splashes of waves towards the shore. It was like seeing happiness in animal form. Not shifting his eyes away from the sunny horizon, he fumbled with one arm behind his back, trying to feel up some sort of solid support, to backup his safe descent to the ground, and not flinching as he found it, in Levi’s left hand. Holding it firmly, he sat down next to the man.   
And then, there was that familiar tightening in his stomach again, as soon as their bodies leaned onto each other, shoulders brushing together. Eren took a deep breath, shifting and fidgeting on the ground, that wasn’t particularly comfortable, trying to rid himself of the weird sensation. Still moving about, like it was pulled by a magnet, his head turned to the side, his view filling with a slitted stare, Levi apparently being drawn to do the same. There was not much more than a small space for breathing, between their faces. _I want to kiss him,_ a thought came without any warning, and Eren's eyes rounded, widening as he jumped in place, this time him being the one the suddenly jerk his body away. _I..I..What?_ He tried to keep a poker face, pupils shifting around, as he searched through his thoughts. He looked to the man beside him. _I like him...Oh Ymir...I....I can’t believe this_. He moved his head back down, burying his face in his knees. He wanted to laugh at his own discovery. _Of course..._ He thought, a small smile stretching over his lips. It all made sense now, every irrational deed of his since the day he met Levi. This impossible-to-ignore feeling of wanting to be close. _Yes...I...I want..._ Eren turned once more, but Levi’s head was now facing away, a strict stare shooting out into the distance, a slightly tensed jaw seemingly the only witness to what might be going on in his mind. _Right_...Eren thought, looking straight ahead himself too, a moment after. _Of course I would go and assume that Levi feels the same..._ A bitter chuckle escaped his lips. Eren was so naive. Levi had probably noticed his affection a long time ago, the little merman seeing clearly now the reason he was kept always at two arms distance. Their friendship suited them both, but there was no reason for Eren to believe anything more was going on. Besides...Even if there ever was...Just their friendship was already crazy enough on multiple accounts...They couldn’t possibly...  
“What are you smiling about brat?” A soft voice inquired, completely un-matching to the dejected face from seconds before.  
Eren stood up from his place on the rock, “Nothing...I... Absolutely nothing. Could we maybe go now?”  
Levi spent the rest of the evening pretending like he didn’t notice the mood change of the younger male, continuing the front of ignorance all the way through his work the next morning and taking it out to the ocean shore, as the two of them sat on the soft sand waiting for the sun to fall.  
“What will happen to our clothes after we get in?” The merman asked, not really caring too much about the answer, and more just looking to break the tenacious silence, that seemed to plagued them since yesterday. It was getting on his nerves. So maybe they can’t be together, maybe Levi wouldn’t want such thing even if they could, but that shouldn’t have meant that all between them was over. Everything that they shared so far, that’s... That’s all still there and was very real. This strange mannered, mix of not-so-scary monster and weirdly, motherly-affection-prone being was still very dear to his heart.  
“Levi...” Eren said resolutely after a deep breath.  
“Oh right, yeah our clothes...Hanji will come soon and pick it up after we leave.” The shark-man answered, clearly only half present. “We should get going.” He mumbled already half up from the ground.  
“Right...” Eren whispered into his chin.  
They separated to different sides of the same beach, Levi’s “no-nakedness-in-front-of-each-other” policy, causing them to take a few annoying extra steps in this whole process. Eren stepped his feet into the water...it was freezing cold. “What the hell?” He couldn’t remember ever feeling this kind of sensation from the ocean. Their bodies were made to coexist perfectly with it ... _Oh._ Levi’s cautioning words replayed in his mind - the merman body was different now. “Son of a seal.” He cursed splashing his legs through ankle length waves. With the intention of hopefully speaking to Levi in a more natural environment, he jumped forward into the water. They met by a rock not far from the shore, and with nothing but a glance of acknowledgement they swam towards home, breaking the waves in an even pace.  
“Good thing you are so feared, out here.” Eren joked, between his laboured breathes. “I haven’t seen a single shadow of another creature on the road.” It was much less stressful to cover such a long distance, knowing nothing would show up at your tail to eat you.  
“I'll...I'd still like to make sure you'll get to you _“prison”_ safely.” Levi reciprocated Eren’s playful sentiments, “It seems like you have a knack for those.”   
The half-beast was rarely smiling, even when his words made it sound like he should have been. It was one of the things Eren found endlessly amusing, the teasing and jokes delivered with an almost deadpan expression, seemed to just increase their impact. The merman laughed heartily remembering his own little adventure. He almost missed to comprehend, that this would be the first time Levi had ever offered willingly to go anywhere near the lagoon. Webbed hands soon touched upon the rim of it.   
“I am not leaving, until I ensure with my own two eyes, that you are safely inside that circle.” Levi mocked, and Eren rolled his eyes, hurling himself, as quietly as he could across the border, trying to disturb the water as minimally as possible.   
“There...The only thing that can kill me now is Carla Jaeger.” He whispered, a laugh escaping between his fingers. A loop-sided smile from Levi, washed away the merman’s giggles. He moved forward, elbows leaning on top of the coral wall.  
“Levi...” His hushed voice prompted the shark-man to move closer.  
“Levi, I...” He forgot what he wanted to say, as light-grey eyes reflected the moon only a few knots away from his own face. “I really want to kiss you.” The words came straight from his chest to his mouth. It wasn’t what he initially planned to say, but he didn’t give a damn.  
A small huff, betrayed Levi’s surprise, his lips pressing together as his eyes dropped down.  
“You want a lot of things you shouldn’t Eren.” His voice was heavy and serious.  
Green eyes narrowed, “What others think I shouldn’t...” He corrected, not letting the distance between their heads increase.  
Levi’s eyes shifted up finally, moving across Eren’s face, to linger on his determined gaze, watching as if he was questioning their seriousness, only for his own face to soften, like he saw something that made him satisfied, before his pupils flicked just slightly down to Eren’s lips, and then up to his eyes again, keeping the usual sharp edges of his expression as gentle as he could.  
Nothing more was needed for Eren to prop his body on his hands, and lean forward, unable to close his eyes as he carefully began to shorten the distance between their lips.  
“Levi...” He whispered, only a thin layer of sea crystals now between them. Eren just couldn’t suppress a chuckle.  
“Levi.. “He spoke in a soft, quiet voice, resting a palm on Levi’s tense face, and offering a caress with a sway of his fingers. “I am not about to stab spears through your chest. Are you sure this is ok?” He nudged the half-man's nose with his own. “Although I do seem to have a spear, that is very curious about you...” The merman was in a full blown laughing fit by now.  
Levi’s eyes snapped open, the crude remark taking a moment to reach his anxious brain, and he threw his hands up from where they were resting on the wall. “Oh my godess Eren! You truly have no sense of...”   
But the merman didn’t let him finish, grabbing both of his palms and dragging him back, “I want to hear your words Levi...Will you let me kiss you?”   
Bodies halfway out of the water, they floated forehead to forehead, as only the softly splashing waves offered a sound to fill the silence, for the next few moments.  
“Y-yes...Fine...Just ..Just do it already, you absolute assho..” Levi spoke up, words tapering away unfinished, as Eren’s lips gently touched his. The merman wasn’t hasty, or sloppy or uncoordinated, or anything like he was in his everyday life. He moulded to Levi’s mouth, turning his head slowly to one side, breaking the contact for a split second only to move gradually towards the other, making sure to taste him corner to corner. All the while, soft finger pads, sent goosebumps from the man’s scalp to his entire body, Eren’s hand comfortably entangled through his dark hair.  
The merman felt a small hum vibrate against his mouth, and he smiled over it, his tongue licking the salt away asking for permission to deepen their contact. His heart drummed loudly, as Levi’s mouth parted, and he go to taste the warmth of him, both of their breathes quickening, as the man’s hand hesitantly planted itself on Eren’s chest.  
“This...Is how you make me feel.” He whispered, covering Levi’s hand with his own, both of them clearly able to sense the frantic beating of his heart. Then he tilted his head, searching for Levi’s mouth to kiss him again.   
It went on like that, the merman finding new ways to connect his mouth to Levi’s, lips closed together, then parted again, teeth catching gently onto soft flesh, tongue leaving wet coolness across the shark-man‘s jawline and venturing even further down...”Eren...” The man’s words were breathless. “Eren... That’s... That’s enough, you insatiable fish.” Levi reprimanded through a chuckle. It seemed like if Eren was concerned, they would be here all night. _That wouldn’t be so bad..._ Levi thought, annoyed with his own thoughts...But... “Your friend will be here soon. He'll see...”  
“I don’t care...” Eren said, moving his palm to Levi’s cheek, thumb sliding languidly over his jaw. “Holy fuck Levi...I...I like you so much.” He confessed, not bothering to or even being able to hold back, leaning his head against Levi’s. It seemed like once his feelings were out in the open and clear to his own mind, they kept bubbling up and rolling down his tongue, as soon as they appeared, finding their outlet not only in words, but the need he sensed on his lips and tongue, and on the tip of his fingers, each commanding him to ask for more of anything that belonged to the man across him.  
“Eren...You...You are...And I'm....” Levi didn’t know where to start the explanation, of why what they did just now, could never be a permanent thing.   
“Not now...Can we...Can we not discuss this now?” Eren pleaded, now holding the man’s head with both hands. Let me enjoy this, he thought, before moving a bit away, a thought occurring to him that could serve as a perfect subject-changer. “I always wanted to ask you...How do you even know I am the prince of Paradis?” The merman cocked his head, scrunching his eyebrows. He never specified such a thing.  
Levi gazed at him, a smile creeping onto his lips, as he raised an eyebrow and leaned in. Rubbing the merman’s forehead with his own, noses touching, he connected their lips, pushing through them with his tongue, and Eren jumped away, as he felt Levi’s tongue trace the shape of his teeth.  
“What the hell was that!?” He raised his voice forgetting for a moment to be silent, as he rubbed the tickling feeling away, bringing the back of his palms to his mouth.   
“You’re a smooth-tooth.” Levi explained with a cheeky grin.  
“And you're a pervert!” Eren retorted to laughing hysterically again, trying to muffle the sound with both hands over his mouth.  
“Herbivores are only found inside your lagoon, and since you spent the majority of your time being up in my face, concluding you are from Paradis was easy.” Levi continued the explanation. “ And even before that...You said your name was Eren...The only fish known by that name is the son of Grisha...”   
A light flickered on the edges of the rim, not to far from where they were floating.   
“Armin...” Eren realized, immediately looking at Levi, freezing for a moment, before grabbing his face and pulling him quickly in for another kiss. “I have to go...I'll be at our usual place tomorrow...” He whispered against him, before letting go, and disappearing under the water a moment after.  
*****  
With the axolotl by his side, they descended towards the bottom. It was difficult for Eren to keep the joy away from his face, as he let himself fall slowly backwards through the water, the kiss replaying in his head, causing his face muscles to twitch into a smile. There were still many walls to break, Levi's facade only starting to develop little spider-web cracks under Eren’s fingertips. To get to the other side of it, he knew he would have to get pass through his own barriers first, the one physically put up by his parents, as well as the walls of scripture that made up the policies of his kingdom. But those thoughts could wait till next day. Right now his body felt electrified with having Levi’s lips on his own, and he intended to blissfully ride on the wave of that, as long as he could.   
A question from Armin brought back thoughts about the things he had seen in the outside world.. _.Yes, those walls would need to go down too._

 


	8. Boneless Fish

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the hiatus! :( I am so busy lately, that I just couldn't find the time or motivation to sit down and write!  
> Thank you for bearing with me and hopefully you have not given up on this fic, as I promise I haven't!  
> As always thank you for reading <3
> 
> Hopefully the developments in this chapter weren't too sudden. I must give a slight angst and slight smut warning >:)  
> Looking forward to hearing your thoughts!

With his heart beating loudly in his throat, Eren greeted the shiny moon, smiling at it briefly, before he jumped the coral border, passing over the only thing that served to contain his excitement to undetectable levels. He knew the guards were switching shifts just about now, he knew that Mikasa was probably, already, all the way on the other side of the rim, and that his parents would be finishing their long, nightly meeting in about a few minutes. He knew, that this gave him just enough time to jump out of the water, and twirl his body in the air, before splashing back with quite a watery racket , giving freedom to the feelings he had to keep under a poker face for the entire day, pretending like his thoughts were not completely consumed by the constant, vivid sensation of Levi’s lips on his own. It was ridiculous really, Eren thought, as he sped through the waves. Just a kiss... Something he witnessed happening all the time. Half humans of every shape, meeting lip to lip, as a sign of hello, good luck or goodbye. An expression of affection, trust and loyalty between mates... It seemed like such an easy thing to give and receive, and he never saw anyone, quite literally, flip out over it. Not this much at least...

But this was his kiss...His....And Levi’s! And what a kiss it was! 

With thoughts, rose-coloured, as the tail that trailed behind him, the merman crossed into green algae territory, one belonging to a certain blushing beast. He was going to be stubborn against him, no matter what lame excuse was to come out of the shark’s mouth.

A few moments later, somewhat expecting it, but still a little bit taken aback, Eren was greeted with cold eyes, nothing like his own. Observing the cool glint in them, he realized with a sigh, how these seemingly indifferent greetings were happening more often than they were not. His heart tensed, but he still moved forward with a smile.

“Hey...” Eren greeted, the word coming out clumsy and unfinished, his inflection making it seem like he still wanted to speak further. But the beautiful face of the dark haired, half-human, was looking down , with lips pressed together. It caged Eren's words behind his teeth.

“To be completely honest...” Levi murmured under his breath, “I was hoping Armin and you would get caught in your lies, and that you wouldn’t be allowed to leave your room for a quite while.” There was no humor in his voice.

“That’s...A little mean...” Eren laughed, a desperate attempt to lighten up the situation.

“Yeah? Well... It’s a lot less meaner than the things I have to tell you, now that you're here...” Levi’s expression was stiff, jaw tense and eyebrows narrow. It was clear he didn’t enjoy this any more that Eren did.

“Look...” Levi began, and the merman sighed out slowly, calming himself. There was not a single reason, in this watery world of theirs or the other, earthly one above them, that would convince Eren, that ignoring their feelings for some greater good was the right thing to do...Not after he had him so close...No matter what anyone says...No matter what Levi...

“... You’re at... _That age_...” The shark mumbled out awkwardly.

Green eyes squinted, trying to see through the meaning of the man’s words. “What?”

“You heard me...You are just about _that age_ Eren...” He repeated, and before the merman could express his preplexedness over what was being insinuated, Levi continued to speak. “I know you have all kinds of thoughts and ideas mixing in that fishead of yours. Most likely very indecent ones I would say...You...You just got confused over to whom should they be directed at.” The shark said, stubbornly staring at the ground.” We spent way too much time together and...You...You should...I'm sure you’ll find a suitable mate soon enough...” With a small pause, he looked up to say the next sentence. “You know... Someone who is your own species.” 

Rage burned through Eren, turning his tail completely dark purple, much like that of his mother, eyes igniting with a deep fluorescent green. He laughed out of pure bitterness, “So what you’re trying to tell me... Is that... What I feel for you is not real?” A fiery gaze was burning holes through grey skin, but Eren kept his voice calm. “Is that the best excuse you got? Cause if it is, then let me tell you that I tried...” This time he let the raise in his voice come through, “...Dozens...No hundreds of times to call out to someone! And you know what happened Levi...Nothing! Nothing! Why is that!? What I...What I felt for you when I saw you... I have never... I didn’t even know it was possible. Is that not how it’s supposed to be? Isn’t that what they tell you it feels like when you meet your mate!?” Eren found his worked up state leaving him a bit out of breath. “I don’t care about the laws of our nature...Or any laws, Levi. So if you are trying to tell me that my affection for you can be brushed off as just me being horny, because _I am in that age_ ,  then you can shove that excuse where the water doesn’t reach! And...and...” He stopped, closing his eyes for a breath, “...What about you Levi...” The merman spoke in a daring voice, and with a few quick tail-shifts, he was in Levi’s space, making the elder lean on the stone wall behind. “ Are you _in that age_ too then? “ Teasing fingers, danced over a pale, bare chest, finding their way across protruded collarbones, before finally catching onto a sharp chin and lifting it up, “Cause I’m pretty sure I wasn’t the only one getting off on that kiss last night.” 

“You don’t care about any laws do you?” An arm swung forward pushing the merman away, Levi’s voice seeping irony. “Then tell me, my prince, have you informed your beloved parents about these wild plans of yours? Hm? Told them you spent a few interesting days with your feet on dry land, in a company of a carnivorous, human-shifting shark?” Levi’s words bit sharper than any wound he could physically cause with his teeth. “All this time Eren...You couldn’t even tell them you were here with me...Not even right now, as you spew this courageous nonsense at me...” 

The blinding lights of the merman’s anger dimmed, as Eren’s lips gradually pressed together. He...He couldn’t argue Levi on that point. It was indeed a battle that was yet to be fought, despite the fact that it couldn’t ever truly be won. It was not just a question of his parents approval...It was the whole damn kingdom’s. An entire nation had a say in his personal life, just because he was to inherit the responsibility over it, in about a year. An entire world he would have to go against or abandon, if he was to chose to have Levi by his side. 

“Look...” The shark broke through the silence impatiently, “I indulged your little whim last night, we had our moment, but that’s where this ends. I have to go back to _my_ real life and _my_ problems now, and _you_ have to go back to yours...Neither of us needs to pile up new shit to deal with, on top of everything...” 

“Screw that...” Eren whispered into his own chin.

“What are you mumbling?” Levi narrowed his eyes, annoyed.

“I said, screw that!” Eren yelled angrily, stopping to look at Levi, before swinging his tail around  full force and swimming away.

“So be it...”He thought, gritting his teeth through the waves.

*******

The smell of fresh herbs filled the air. Warmth radiated through the doorframe, and just feeling that with one's eyes closed, was enough to paint a picture of true calmness and domesticity. Two people sat across each other, smiling tiredly towards one another, clutching their warm cups, as they slowly talked through something indiscernible to the naked ear.

Eren watched them for a few moments, trying to quiet down his heavy breaths, as he prepared to disturb the serenity of the room. Not that this wasn’t the case many, many times before anyway. He truly felt it sometimes, like he was constantly out of place, both physically and metaphorically.

“What is it honey?” His mother’s voice prompted him to step out of the darkness. Nothing could ever escape Carla's sharp ears.

The merman cleared his throat, “Mom...” before turning his head to the left, “Dad...”

There wasn’t any room for hesitation now, he was here to speak his truth, and damned he be to these circle walls forever, if he would to back out now and miss his chance of genuine happiness, one that he only tasted recently for the first time in his  life. “I...I am going to marry a shark!” He said with as much determination as he could muster at that moment.

There weren’t any instant reactions. No outrage, or shock on anyone’s faces. His eyes darted with barely concealed panic, from one expression to the other, looking for clues of any kind of emotion. There was nothing, just the silence filling the room as it mingled with the steam from the teacups.

“So that’s where you were wandering off to in your nightly missions?” His mother spoke, and Eren froze as the words left her lips.

“I...” He attempted a sentence.

“Come on sweetie, you really think you were that sneaky?” She raised an eyebrow, lips set in a straight line, even though her voice might have come off to someone as light-hearted. Someone...Eren huffed. Someone who didn’t know Carla Yeager at all.

“Who is she?” The king inquired from the other side of the table, and Eren gulped, not being able to contain the way his heart was beating out of his chest.

“It’s a he... It’s...” Despite his anxiousness, he was ready to say it. “It’s...”

“Doesn’t matter.” Carla interrupted. “It’s not going to happen...You know that don’t you? You have an obligation that is greater than...”

“I didn’t come here to ask for permission.” A bullshit speech about his “duty” towards society was all it took for his anger induced courage to come back. He never wanted to be a prince, or a king, or a fish forced to spend his life in a safety prison. As long as he can remember he wanted nothing to do with it.

“Eren...We are not trying to be intentionally cruel to you...We wish...” His father cut in-between two angry gazes,” We wish we could just let you do whatever you want, or wed whomever your heart desires, but an outsider...A shark non-the least...He would never be able to adapt to life in our kingdom. Not to mention...”

“Not to mention he would never be accepted.” Eren’s eyes watched his father through a barrier of tears.

“Not to mention, his survival depends on feeding on our flesh Eren...Do you even hear yourself?” Carla scolded again.

 _Levi would never_ , Eren thought, realizing all too well there wasn’t much point in speaking out his thoughts out loud. _He would never hurt anyone..._

Tears were warming his face, his distress lighting up his cheeks, which he yanked away as soon as his mother’s fingers stood up to touch them.

“Eren...My darling... Let’s... Let’s sleep on this allright?” She spoke softly, unlike some moments before, but Eren’s disappointment was irreversible.

“Yeah... Let’s do that.” He answered through a few sniffles, wiping them off with his palm as he turned around and left the kitchen.

As soon as everyone retreated to their bedroom, he was out in the cold ocean, leaving quietly through his window, paying full attention to not being noticed, as he slithered past the guards through tall and dense seaweed, praying none of his body parts would catch the stubborn strands, and cause him to get tangled and probably discovered immediately after. He took a sharp seashell sickle with him just in case. But soon, he was out of danger and out of sight, and close to stepping over to freedom. He didn’t think, he didn’t weigh any consequences. He just did.

“Levi _must_ be still out there.” It was nighttime after all, and the shark needed to eat, the merman hoped as he sped over the horizon.

******

“I sensed you as soon as you jumped over that wall...” The shark said in a strict voice, instead of a greeting. He was perched on a rock with a wide, flat surface that barely peeked out of the ocean, leaning back on his stretched out arms, his tail swaying, as it gently stirred the water. With the moonlight highlighting his features in a line that traced the edges of his forehead...nose...lips...neck...bare chest...Holy Ymir....Eren gulped audibly. He was worth of going against the entire world for.

“Are you in trouble? You smell like you are, from miles away...” The beautiful half-man suddenly turned around, Eren still finding himself unable to string together anything that would count as a sensible sentence. 

“Eren...Are you all right? Is someone after you? I should’ve sensed it....” The shark jumped from the rock into the water, circling around the merman once, eyes narrowed, looking for an invisible threat to show up out of nowhere.

Eren caught him by the shoulders with both hands, before the next round. “No.. I’m... I’m fine ...” He said through a small chuckle. “I was just admiring you’re stunning presence.” He admitted, keeping full eye contact, anticipating that inevitable look of bashfulness on Levi’s face, an expression of someone who was not used to ever being complimented.

He didn’t get to enjoy it for too long though, as he found himself pushed away, as soon as the words reached the beasts head. “You will seriously make me vomit.” The shark said, swimming away, making the merman crack up into a short laughing fit.

“What did you do Eren?” Levi’s words brought him back to reality.

“I...I’m in trouble. In a lot of trouble actually.” The merman admitted, proceeding to explain the circumstances that led him to come back here in the dead of the night. 

After a few moments of stunned silence, Levi gathered his bearings to speak up, “You know...” He couldn’t help but chuckle.” It is customary to ask one to agree to marriage, before announcing it to the world.” The smile on his face was inconcealable, he was completely amused by Eren’s way of casually talking about such matters, like they were a done and certain deal.

But the serious expression on the merman’s face, had him wipe off the smile off his own. He approached the fishling, gently placing a palm over his warm cheek. “Sounds like you got it pretty shitty, don’t it?” His fingers slid down, to intertwine with Eren’s. “Come...” He pulled the merman.

They swam for a while, hand in hand, Levi’s naturally energetic pace outrunning Eren’s, who felt himself emotionality exhausted, a state which clearly affected his usual bounciness, as he let the shark practically drag him through the dense waters. Soon their tails touched upon a stony surface, and green eyes filled with a view of a magnificently white limestone cave, hidden behind tall kelp greenery , decorated with more colorful formations of coraline algae. It was miraculous than anything managed to survive in such depths. 

They squeezed in past the tall trees and found themselves in a small, but nothing short of a stunning hall of rocks, specks of colorful light flashing over the walls as Eren’s bioluminescent tail swayed past the many crystals on the way.

Levi seemed shocked at the discovery. “I had no idea these could be so bright.” No one expect him has ever been here after all, and he was , by every  meanings of the word, not a particularly glowy being.

“If I could call anything in this ocean a home, this would be it.” The shark explained, turning to Eren as he let go of his hand. Green eyes were wide and full of light, and Levi smiled, keeping his fond expression a secret, as he stood behind the merman. “This is the only place where I am capable of resting, away from any scents and danger. Although I couldn’t really say that I sleep per se...”

“This...This is wonderful...” Eren watched his slightly skewed reflection on the surface of a crystal in the far right corner, the hue of it changing form pale pink and barely visible yellow to dark blue, depending on how he positioned his body.

 _It is, now that you’re here..._ Levi thought, heartbeat accelerating immediately upon realizing his disgusting inner monologue. Shit, maybe Eren had a point...Maybe finding your mate really felt like this – the weird, uncharacteristic, unexplainable sensations fighting their way out of one's mind, constantly pushing through to show themselves, forcing a person to say, to touch...To be just all around a strange, fidgety being whenever that certain someone was around. He moved to stand next to the merman, both of their reflections now bathing in the colors of Eren’s light.

“There is this thing called a “camera”.” Levi started off, seemingly on a tangent. “Humans carry it around all the time to capture moments they want to remember. I...” The shark sighed out. “I wish I had one of those now.”

But Eren didn’t understand a single word of what Levi just said. He had no capacity to even begin to imagine such a thing, and more importantly half of the shark-man's words just got lost in the space between their lips, as Eren turned his head, much like many times before, feeling a magnetic need to be in Levi’s personal space. Only this time he wasn’t scolded for it. He pressed his lips on the half-human's, Levi’s quickened breathing making him lean in an deepen their contact.

“How many...” Eren pulled away, just enough so he could speak, face still pressed against the shark’s. “How many times will you show me....Or...Or...Do something that takes my breath away...” He folded his fingers around Levi’s chin, tilting the man’s head up. “Thank you...” He kissed him again. The  same hand slid forward, putting dark hairs in its embrace, while the other sneaked past a beautifully sculpted waist, making sure to touch upon ever curve of muscle on its way, before landing against the shark’s back, pushing their bodies together. Eren’s kisses moved downwards, tracing Levi’s jaw line, neck, and touching upon every inch of his collarbones, leaving the man panting through slightly parted lips. The sweet, breathy sounds and Levi’s unexpected, but not at all unwelcome pliancy, gave the merman the much needed courage to dare to consider some of the things he long had in his mind...And boy did he have some ideas. 

Slowly, moving his lips to Levi’s chest, the merman allowed his tongue to join in on the exploration. He was burning to taste the man’s skin, and a hum escaped Eren’s mouth, as he did. Lingering for a moment, as he listened to any sign of protest coming from above, Eren was only confronted with more cute, low moans, and he smiled , his heart doubling in speed, as part of him was still unable to believe this was actually happening. _If this works, I might actually just have a heart attack,_ he thought, poking hesitantly his tongue out again, as he moved the tiniest bit down...And then a little more....And a little more, until he had his tongue circling very slowly over a tip of a nipple. He felt Levi’s body tense, as an _Ah_ sound escaped him. But just a moment after, he was gently pushed away.

“Eren...” Levi spoke his name, with his head slightly tilted to the side, hooded gaze and flushed cheeks, not going unnoticed by the merman, even though the shark seemed to want to hide his flusterdness, as much as possible.

“I know, I’m sorry...” Eren made a half-step back, with his heart in his throat. This Levi was a fucking piece of art. “I wanted...Uh.... Let’s just...” He swallowed, trying to remember how to speak, before he quickly fixed up his usual smile. “Why don’t you show me around you bomb-ass crib?” He pulled Levi away from the wall he was leaning on, making an over exaggerated gesture towards the rest of the room, and causing Levi to roll his eyes.

 _Good_ , Eren thought through a laugh. The last thing he wanted was to make the man feel bad or uncomfortable in any way.

Just as he stepped deeper into the room, he felt a hand leave his own. His heart tensed in time with quickly turning around - he was ready to apologize again, but the words got stuck in his mouth, seeing there was no one behind him. Rotating his head to the front again, he came face to face with an icy gaze. But...There was something different about them.

“Can you do that again?” A low voice inquired, and Eren could feel the letters, as warm air over his lips. 

“D-do...What?” He was simply unable to comprehend what was going on.

Gently, Levi took Eren’s hands, placing the right behind his own head, and sliding the left around his waist, just as they were before, as he started to move both of them, swimming backwards through the water, until his back touched upon the wall again, this time on the opposite side of the room. 

They stared at each other for a long moment, Eren not daring to make a move without an explicit confirmation from the elder, willing to give Levi all the time he needed. He whispered next to his ear, “What is it that you want me to do Levi?” There was a hint of teasing in his voice.

“I...” It was Levi’s turn to mumble. “What you...uh...What you did just moments ago...On that other umm... Other wall. “ He barely sounded out, before Eren’s lips were on his again. 

Slow, languid movements, intersected with barely palpable nips and tugs, as Eren took his time catching Levi’s soft flesh in between his tongue and teeth, had just the desirable effect and the man quickly found himself, helplessly letting out little whines, with every shift of Eren’s lips over his body.

“I remember doing this...” Eren teased, as he left a string of kisses over Levi’s jaw. “And this...” He moved down, licking a line over his neck and the center of his chest, progressing quicker than he would have wanted too, enjoying the goosebumps he felt under his mouth and fingers, and wanting to have Levi squirm just a little bit longer. But the truths was, he was torturing himself way more. “Also...” He whispered closely against the man’s skin, “I recall feeling the taste of this...” 

A squeak that should not have come from a beastly predator, echoed faintly through the room. Eren’s fingers squeezed around black hair strands, pulling subconsciously, as excitement dictated his movements. Letting his tongue test the sensitivity of Levi’s nipples, his left hand kept running slow laps over a muscular back.

“Eren...ah...You can...” The shark attempted to speak through his moans. “More...” Was all he managed.

Green eyes disappeared behind a few blinks, processing the words, processing the way they sounded...The needy, breathless intonation... _He_ made Levi feel this way. It was beyond arousing.

He let his hand slip from Levi’s back, to trace gently over his backside before circling around to his lower stomach. _This...This is what more meant right?_ Eren wondered, as he carefully slid his hand down, resting his open palm over a very noticeable bulge on Levi’s front. _This should feel good to him,_ he thought, eyes trained on the elder's face, trying to not miss any changes in his expression. Without blinking, Eren moved his palm up...and then down... Putting a small amount of pressure over the area with the root of his thumb. He repeated the motion, watching as Levi’s eyebrows narrowed more and more, his jaw going slack as he let his head lean on the wall behind. Slowly, one finger and then another, were tracing the lines of the small opening on the front of Levi’s tail, before they felt brave enough to go past it, dipping into the warm wetness that hid the man’s arousal.

“Is this...Is this ok?” Eren asked with a shaky voice, being probably as overwhelmed by these sudden developments, as much as Levi’s was himself. A shy, side-nod didn’t leave him much time to dwell on it, as he was given permission to reach inside, and free Levi’s erection from its confines. 

_Shit._

Levi thought, as the cold water, sent shivers up his spine.

_Shit._

Eren thought, as he looked at Levi’s absolutely disheveled state.

A second later, his fingers were around Levi’s hardness, moving up and down, languidly at first, but quickly speeding up the pace, as the soft whines echoed through the room as encouragement.  “So beautiful...” He whispered, not even realizing he was speaking out loud. “So..” He leaned forward, hesitating only for a moment, before his tongue poked through and he tasted the man for the second time. “So...Sweet...” Eren hummed, before opening his mouth and swallowing around him. He felt Levi shiver under his palms and it was better than anything Eren had ever experienced so far. Better than having legs and walking on Earth, better than any hidden, magical, underwater place, better than any noble goal of saving the ocean society. If he could spend the rest of his life here, on this wall, with Levi in his arms, he would...Oh goddess, he would. 

A sharp squeeze on both of his shoulders, yanked him out of his thoughts.

“Eren...You ah...You better st..op now, or...” Levi pleaded, his body going rigid, the merman feeling like his arms would get pulled out of their sockets.

“It’s fine...” Eren smiled. “Go on beautiful...” He cooed, before returning to his previous actions, grabbing the man by the back of his thighs, pulling him in strongly, until he had him swallowed whole.

“Jesus Christ...Eren...ah...” No other word made it over his lips, as he came, the taste of his sweetness filling the merman’s mouth, and Eren swallowed, backing up just a little, so he wouldn’t actually choke and make a complete fool out of himself on his first ever blowjob. He lingered just a little more, letting Levi ride out his orgasm till the end, before he stood up, one arm extended under the shark’s armpt and leaning on a wall, which the elder took full advantage of, resting the weight of his blissed out body on it, his own arms now around the merman's neck.

“You are beyond wonderful do you know that?” Eren said in his signature cheery voice, as he wiped drops of cum from the corners of his mouth with his thumb, proceeding to lick it and making Levi’s eyes grow wide, face turning every shade of coral.

“You look, you sound, you taste, you feel...Just wonderful...” Eren mumbled, nuzzling into the half-beast's neck, drawing little lines over it with a tip of his nose.

Feeling as he was completely boneless, Levi squeezed him closer, clutching the merman's ever restless head in place. “Just...Stay still and shut up for a second, will you?”

 


	9. Insatiable leech

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Another chapter! Mostly kinky and just a bit dramatic ;)  
> Happy Holidays everyone! ^^

“Just...Stay still and shut up for a second, will you?” The shark buried his head in the merman’s neck, dark hair tips falling over Eren’s shoulder, making the younger wiggle, as he felt their tickle over his skin.

“Your impossible...” Levi murmured, a chuckle escaping him, as he shook his head at the fish's inability to stay motionless for longer than a few seconds.

“A minute...Just give me a minute...” The shark said, lifting his head and Eren found himself face to face with beautiful eyes again, all the colors around them stirring inside, as if they too were made of crystals. “Then we could...Uh...Stay on this wall a little longer, “ came the words with a slight upward glance, and Eren gulped. He liked this coy but flirty Levi way more, than the angry and sarcastic, or the one that looked beautiful but melancholic, bathing in the moonlight, as he thought about all of the weights burdening his shoulders. A bat of long lashes followed, before a single finger drew a line down the centre of Eren's stomach. _Yep_ , this was definitely his favourite Levi so far. 

Then a warm cheek was against his chest, Eren’s hand going to the back of it, tangling itself into silky hair, a lot more gentler this time, finger pads just barely caressing Levi’s scalp. It was enough though, to cause a comfortable shiver that ran through the half-shark first, and then through the merman too, his body seeming to overtly react to even the smallest stimulations. Eren hummed involuntarily, causing the shark to look up.

_You are being very patient aren't you..._ Levi thought with a small smirk, staring up at Eren’s badly concealed, needy expression. The shark’s hand slipped down between them, and this time the merman moaned louder, thin fingers wrapping around exactly where Eren needed them the most.  

_Ahhh..._ The room elongated the small whine.

“Good?” Levi asked smiling, the question obviously rhetorical. Eren was a true image of candle melting away under the heat. 

_Mhpmh..._

The merman extended his hand over Levi’s shoulder, leaning it against the wall, as his head fell forward, eyes closed and mouth slack, the water gently fluttering his brown locks. Levi met the dangling forehead with his own, offering a support for it, as he reveled in the proximity of Eren’s warm breath, his own arousal quickly returning at the sensation. The “big deal” people and merpeople alike, made out of the concepts of “love and sex”, the things he had never considered or had the time for...He understood it now.

“Eren...” He spoke against warm lips. “Do you...Do you want to...uh...” Just because he enjoyed it so much though, unfortunately didn’t mean that words came to him any more easily.

Luckily even in the state like this, Eren didn’t seem to have those problems. “Have sex with you?” He leaned forward smiling into their kiss, “Marry you?” Another kiss came, teeth slightly tugging at his lower lip, “Have tea with you everyday until we die? Because whatever you want to ask Levi, the answer is fuck yes...” 

The shark couldn’t help but let out a small laugh, “H-how about we start with that first one...And take it slowly from there?” 

“Nothing would make me happier...” Half-lidded, green eyes, stared into him with want, not even a breath away from his own.

A few moments of confused silence followed, before Eren spoke up again, “So...How do we do it?”

Levi blinked at him...Once....And then twice...Snorting, before the third stunned blink could occur. In all truthfulness, it was a legitimate question, the technicalities of coupling surely not being addressed at merschool biology classes. This realm was not like the one upstairs, there was no internet or porn, and merpeople navigated through life mostly only led by their instincts. Sure, they talked amongst each other, and not once had Levi heard stories that were 'out there' in terms of detailing ones private encounters. No matter the preaching and belief in your _one true mate_ , in practice things tended to be different, and the curiosity of fish brains endless. But Eren was royalty...Which meant he had most likely grown up under a glass bell, and the people he was allowed to be friends with were probably just as clueless as he was. And to speak honestly, Levi wasn’t that much more knowledgeable about such things, his grasp on all things sexual based on one awkward conversation with Hanji, and human porn he saw and was warned about not to take too seriously. This laugh came from the fact that they were in fact here, floating impatiently and ready to devour each other, only if they knew how.

“I...I mean I know how...Or I assume...Uh...” Eren retorted, feeling a bit like Levi was laughing at his inexperience. “I just...Not sure what’s the best way, so...So I don’t hurt you...”

“Hey...We are in the same pickle, “ Levi said laughing again, as Eren raised his eyebrows.

“What’s a pi...?” The younger asked, and before he could even finish the sentence Levi hurried to explain.

“It means we are troubled by the same thing.” Pale fingers, wrapped around warm, tan ones, and slowly guided them to the back of the shark’s tail. “Here,” Levi prompted, and Eren gulped, feeling a slippery opening on his fingerpads.  

“It shouldn’t suppose to hurt...I heard if you...A-Ahhh...” It felt like electricity going through his body, and it cut his words in half.

“Turn around.” Eren demanded, heart racing at Levi’s unabashed reaction. Lowering himself down to see better, very softly, his finger curved inside him, brushing over a spot that made Levi’s muscles contract around it, as he moaned out into the water.

“Jesus...” Levi whispered, and Eren didn’t understand. 

“Does it hurt? Should I stop?” The merman swam up, searching for Levi’s face, to gauge his expression.

He was met with glassy, sharp eyes. “Damn you...” Levi murmured, “Do not dare to stop now.”

Smirking, Eren repeated the action from earlier...Again, and again...His own brain getting woozy from the way Levi looked, and smelled and sounded...The way his body reacted to every little bend of Eren’s finger.

“You can ah...hn...” Levi tried to speak and this time Eren understood perfectly.

“Lean your hands on the wall.” He prompted gently, lifting up and kissing Levi behind the ears, the neck, burying his nose in the man’s soft hair, as he aligned himself against his back. “You’ll tell me, if anything is not right, yeah?” Eren spoke, voice breathy with arousal.

“Mhm”, Levi nodded, eyes squeezed together in anticipation.

“Don’t...” Eren leaned over Levi’s shoulder, using his thumb to iron out the wrinkles above his eyes. “...Do that...” He turned his head to plant kisses over his right cheek. “I swear I won’t do anything to hurt you.” It was a promise for this moment, as much as for the future.

“I know...” Levi answered in a hushed voice.

With slow, languid movements, Eren found himself with eyes full of tiny stars, as Levi’s tightness surrounded him. Stopping, as his heart drummed in his ears, he took deep breaths, trying to control his excitement. Levi breathed with him, and soon, shallow, tense breathes became more deeper, more full, and small squeaks escaped in-between them.

Eren touched him everywhere, it seemed like his fingers and palms were at multiple places at the same time, searching for something or just indulging, Levi wasn’t sure. It felt great nevertheless, having Eren inside and all over himself, he could sense just how much the boy wanted him, how much he was appreciated by this restless creature...It all translated without words, through Eren’s body.

Even after, laying in the soft cushions of the moss covered stones, that was their refuge for tonight, Eren refused to keep any distance, then again when did he ever consider the boundaries of one’s personal space, his hand moving mischievously up and down Levi’s thigh, causing shivers where there should have been none. Not after all the time they spent on that wall. The shark-man blushed.

“I want to talk to you about things, but you are making me unable to concentrate on a single thought.” Eren admitted, scooching closer, as his fingers squeezed around Levi’s thigh. 

“M...” Eren’s scent had stuck Levi's words in his throat. He cleared it not so subtly. “Maybe uh....Maybe try and not act like an insatiable leech for a moment, hm? How about that?” Levi said, half through a laugh, as he moved slightly, putting some distance between them.  “We do have some things to discuss...” He added in a more serious tone.

Eren rolled over reluctantly, shifting his eyes towards the stony ceiling. “How long do you think, till they find me?” 

“Is Erwin still the head of your father's army?” The shark asked, turning his head a bit.

“Yeah...” Eren answered.

They both sighed out.

“He'll track you down before daylight. I’d bet on it.” Levi concluded. “The greatest soldier of our underwater world. A good man too.”

“Do you want me to give you his shell number?” Eren joked. It was actually one of Erwin’s ingenious tactical inventions. One could use an empty shell, to transmit frequencies over greater distances through the water, by blowing into it. This would reveal the caller’s location, sort of like a one sided mating call, except that it was used for army and rescue purposes, sending help to lost merpeople or coordinating missions outside the walls. That sort of things.

“I already have it.” Levi said smugly,  “An old friend of mine, we learned all the fighting from and with each other.” The shark spoke with a small smile, both sad and fond, “He...He had chosen more conventional waters, and I don’t blame him. Military strategy is where he excels.”

“So...Erwin was a wildling?” Eren asked, the gears not yet turning in his head.

“We all were once... Remember?” Levi reminded.

“... Before the wall...” Eren finished the sentence. _Before his dad’s wall_. He sighed again. “Sooo...That gives us, what...2,3 hours till sunrise?” The merman shuffled closer again. “I have some ideas on how to spe...”

“Eren,” Levi cut him off, rolling his eyes, before he spoke again. “What if...What if we go up?”

“Up...” Eren repeated. “Up as in...”

“Yes”, Levi confirmed, “Up as in out of water...They can’t track you there can they?”

Green eyes doubled in size, before eyelids squeezed together, making space for Eren’s laugh, _“I cannot let you go up...”_ The merman deepened his voice to imitate the shark’s, _“Oh it’s too dangerous...so risky...under no circumstances...”_

“Are you done?” Levi watched him unamused. “All of that still stands...With your irresponsible fishead especially...I just...I don’t know what else...” Suddenly there was a weight, pushing his body down further into the spongy moss. Eren was on top of him before he could even blink.

“Yes...” The merman said, kissing the shark on the nose, “Whatever, wherever... I’m in, as long it means I can be in your face...” He stopped to raise both eyebrows, caressing the hair away from Levi’s eyes and forehead. “ You are my fiancé after all...” 

“Yeah...Sure...”  Levi responded, still not taking the merman’s crazy marriage talk even half seriously. He wiggled out under Eren’s body, playfully taping the back of the merman’s messy head. “Come on...We better get going.”

News of the missing prince travelled fast, reaching all the way to the shoreline, almost at the same time as two fishmen touched their palms upon it’s sandy grounds. Levi hesitated at the edge of the ocean.

“Oh come on...” Eren retorted,  “Don’t tell me you still want me to move to the other part of the beach...This embarrassment thing is ridic...”

“It’s not that... I’m...” The half-shark stammered. “I’m worried...Maybe this is not a good idea. What if...” Levi turned to look Eren straight  in the eyes.  _Dammnit._ The merman was glimmering, his gaze twinkling in the moonlight, as he widened them as a sign of attention. ”You’ll need to take the pathogen injection again. “ Levi said regaining his composure. “What if you suffer some permanent changes...What if...What if, this time, I truly can’t transform back?” What was even their plan here? Maybe they should just stop this, before things became more crazier than they were now.

“Then we'll be humans.” Eren said shrugging his shoulders. “I am not going back home tonight.” He added more resolutely, propping himself up in his hands, ready to launch himself to dry land.

“Wait!” Levi yelled, grabbing him by the upper arm. “If we are going to go through with this, then starting this very second, you are listening to everything I tell you! You are not going to go head first through walls, understood?”

“Yes sir...” Eren answered smirking, making Levi step back and roll his eyes.

“Ok...I am going out first. I have my stuff stashed in a box, out there by those rocks. I will call Hanji to pick us up, bring you the injection....and some clothes...” Levi said, shifting his eyes away. “You stay here, and do not move! Got it?” 

With Eren nodding, he was out of the water, landing in the sand, and with small whistling sounds coming from a certain obnoxious creature giggling in the sea, he made his way quickly over the beach, locating his clothes and cell phone buried under it, behind a wall of rocks. As expected, Hanji was ecstatic to have Eren back. 

“No one here thinks about any consequences, do they...” Levi murmured to himself, walking back to the place where he left his merman. 

There was no one there.

 


	10. My lovely, lovely Levi

 

 

“Eren...” Levi whispered, panic turning his voice into a shout “Eren!” A splash of water was the only thing to answer him back, the shark-man not even realizing he was already knee deep in the ocean. Steel eyes searched the horizon. There was nothing.

Just as he was about to jump forward, hoping he was still able to revert back to his marine self, a cold hand wrapped around his ankles, and with a shriek that he was most certainly not proud of, Levi found himself landing butt first in the water. A bubbling laughter, quite literally, filled his ears next, before a brunet head with jewels for eyes emerged from the water. 

“You definitely do not have your shark senses in your human form.” Eren giggled softly, pulling his body up with his arms and trapping Levi under himself. “But you are just as equally sexy.” The merman leaned in, closing his eyes, heart beating with the anticipation of a kiss, but instead he found himself doubling over, as a kick landed on him, just in the most inconvenient place possible. 

“Wha-a...?” He questioned through the pain, laying down next to the one who caused it.

“Is everything a joke to you?” Levi yelled angrily, salty water dripping down his face, making his eyes redden. “Do you...Do you even realize...I thought...” He mumbled. It was true that, no matter how fast the word of the Prince’s disappearance had travelled, no one, not even Erwin would’ve been able to pinpoint their location this fast. Still...

“Do you understand what we are doing here? What you did, not even an hour ago...” The shark turned his head, narrow eyes staring at the boy.”Why would you joke like this...”

Eren closed his own, but had otherwise mimicked the expression on Levi’s face, his arms falling dejectedly next to his body in the shallow water. “I know...” He said drily. “I left my home, my people and my family. I... Abandoned them all.” The merman sighed. “And now dad’s entire army is after me, an army of good people that won’t get to have a proper night’s sleep until they find me.”

Levi kept staring at him, no words coming to his mouth, as Eren’s caught him by surprise. He honestly expected the boy to just shrug it off, as always.

“I’m an incredibly selfish person...And I’m also terrified for my future...And for your future most of all...” The boy sat up, his now blank eyes directed towards the waveless horizon. “But if I keep thinking about such serious things, I’m scared too lose the courage to do what we are about to do “

“Eren... You don’t...” Levi started with a heavy heart, but was immediately cut off.

“I don’t have to do this? No...” Eren’s eyebrows furrowed again. “I cannot go back to that life that everybody wants me to live. I don’t want to. Nothing will ever change in Paradis, and I think...” He squinted his eyes, “I think...Big changes require big actions...And big sacrifices...Just like what you did for our ocean.”

Levi gazed at him, with lips pressed together. He wished he had never met him, this boy who was too brave, too lionhearted, too kind and on top of all, too pretty for his own good. Eren would have never gotten into this mess if it weren’t for Levi. They were not a good combination.

“...So having all this said, if I want to prank my human husband, or give him a blowjob underwater, to distract myself from my troubles, I feel like I should be allowed to do that...” Levi was pulled out of his thoughts, hearing Eren’s laugh, as the merman’s arms somehow found their way around his body again. “Besides seeing you butt naked strutting down the beach, is just completely unfair, if you don’t let me...” He added, his sentence cut short.

“A blowjob you say?” The shark smirked raising an eyebrow curiously. They might've had a terrible influence on each other, but not all the consequences of that were entirely bad. In fact...

****

“Damn ir, Erenahhh...” Levi’s jaw dropped, eyes closing, as he felt Eren wrapping his mouth around him without any intro. Human fingers dug into the sand, the small particles leaking away with every small wave, as the merman’s intensity had Levi desperately grabbing at the fleeting balance. This was...An entirely new sensation. There were....More opportunities to create friction, he thought squeezing his lips, human anatomy very much differing from the smooth, slick shapes of his aquatic form. The feeling was too good, and with Eren’s enthusiasm, Levi had to quietly suck in his moans, cursing and praising the damned fish at the same time, and hoping no one decided to go skinny dipping in this abandoned part of the beach at this time of the night.

Still Eren could hear him, sensitive merman ears catching every sharp inhale and exhale, fascinated eyes watching as Levi’s toes curled in and out, under the water. Just as with their tails changing color, it seemed that humans reacted to intense feelings with their whole bodies too, and Eren was never more pleased with himself for making Levi’s move in such a way from pleasure. Feeling gently with his mouth how, in human form, Levi’s dick had been thicker at the tip than the rest of his length, a curious tongue slid just across and under the part where it started to widen, eyes lighting up as he sensed Levi’s muscles tense, a small “fuck...” escaping his lips. 

_Yes_ , Eren thought repeating the motion with more pressure this time, _my lovely, lovely Levi, let me hear you...Let me hear you more_ , he swallowed around him completely, keeping still for a couple of moments before pulling back up again.

“Christ...” Levi called out, head falling back, the noises of heavy breathing quickening, and Eren, wanting to see and not just hear, dug his tail into the sand and pushed himself further up the shore, so that his head was now out of water, taking Levi with him but not taking him out, smiling as he glanced up at silver eyes going cross. He swallowed deeply once more, lingering at the base and watching intently how narrow eyebrows angled even further, how the blush on Levi’s cheeks just lit up, and the bite on his lower lip tensed, eyes falling shut as the man came, a tiny high pitch mmm sound pushing through Levi’s lips, despite all the efforts to keep it in.

Wiping the corner of his mouth with his thumb, Eren tasted Levi once more, licking his finger, not even flinching at the unfamiliar flavor, eyes half-lidded, as he examined the soft lines of Levi’s blissed out face. A strip of light passed slowly over it, and was followed quickly by another, green eyes widening in awe of it’s beauty. A freaking fairy tale, the merman mumbled incoherently to himself. Any doubts he had about his recent decisions, have been washed away by the oncoming water.

“Eren...Eren!” Something nudged the side of his face and he looked up to see Levi standing above him. “Come on butts for brains, Hanji is here.” When did Levi even managed to get out of the water? The merman wondered, slowly coming out of his lovestruck state.

“Listen, I don’t know what your problem is, but I’m the one who should be lying here like a puppet...” Thin lips moved closer to a pointy ear. “After what you just did to me...” He whispered, smirking as he caught Eren’s earlobe between his teeth and gently tugged at it. “You can shift now.” He said moving away, flirty expression turning a little more serious, “That is...If you still want to...It’s ok if...”

But a huge splash of water drowned the rest of that sentence, and Eren was lying naked on the sand a minute after. He didn’t need to be prompted twice it seems. In fact his enthusiasm was proudly swaying up and down, as the now human fish stood up, wobbling on his feet. Maybe their little underwater playtime was not the smartest idea, Levi though taking off his shirt, and throwing it at Eren to tie it around his waist. He shook his head in disapproval of both of their appearances, but found himself helpless against the giggle that bubbled up from his chest. They truly were terrible together.

“H-hello...” Hanji greeted, her face immediately mimicking Levi’s, as they struggled to not burst out laughing at the scene they were currently witnessing.

“I don’t wanna hear it,” Levi raised his palm, mouth contorting into a half smile, “Not a word.”

“I...Truly can’t promise you that...” Hanji answered watching as two mess of a men, one soaking wet and shirtless, the other naked with a barely concealed boner, made their way into the car.

“What?” Eren furrowed his eyebrows, as a short snort erupted into laughter from the front, and quickly after, from the dark-haired man on the back seat too.

******

With Eren properly dressed up, vaccinated and bathed in lukewarm water to ease his transition, he was tucked into bed and while still breathing heavily, he at least seemed like he was sleeping somewhat peacefully. Levi stared at him for a while, leaning on the doorframe of his bedroom, watching for any signs of distress from a cute, sleeping face, shaking his head at himself as a smile creeped over him. He sighed and headed for the terrace.

Hanji was already there, sitting on one of the soft cushions scattered on the floor. Levi bent to grab one for himself and dragged it right behind his friend, turning around and leaning his back on theirs. He had perfectly functional chairs on his balcony...But this was their thing, or Hanji’s most of all, on of the many “trust exercises”, they forced Levi to do, in an effort to break through the early vocabulary and cultural barriers, and above all the man’s stony cocoon in which he kept himself away from human and aquatic beings alike. There was also this one attempt of Hanji trying to get Levi to fall backwards into their arms, assuring him this would cause Levi to bond more easily, but after Hanji’s failure to correctly approximate Levi’s weight, the small but very muscly man and his eccentric friend, ended up toppling back and down the floor, Hanji having the breath knocked out of their lungs and Levi twisting his right ankle. Needles to say, this has never been attempted again.  But Hanji was the one who found him, breathless on the beach, on the verge of passing out, and despite all their mishaps, he trusted them with his life. The scientist and their crew were coming back from an overnight expedition, when a strange blob on the shore caught Hanji’s eyes. Struggling to put together any words, Levi pleaded to be put back in water, which the long pony-tailed, glasses wearing, weirdly dressed presence thankfully did. From there it took long weeks for Hanji to get any other word out from Levi, the strange half human, half fish, coming to the shore at night, trying to shapeshift and keep himself up on it’s two newly grown legs, then inevitably failing as the relentless, poisonous air that earth dwellers sustained themselves on without any problems, kept attacking his lungs and not giving him any relief till he was back in water again. He was forced to ask for help from this person, who just like him, was coming to the beach every night, quietly sitting aside and waiting patiently for something to happen. Levi had to talk about his world, and had to listen to Hanji talk about theirs, this back and forth exchange of information slowly turning into a friendship, and eventually into a cure too, the one that Eren currently enjoyed with not as much as half of the side effects, that Levi had to go through in earlier versions of the injection. In their talks, they quickly found they had a common goal, and despite the occasional hardships in their communication, to which Hanji offered all those ridiculous games, a solution that should have had helped Levi to express himself more easily, they learned to lean on eachother. He felt a nudge from behind.

“So...To what do I owe this pleasure of you yanking me out of bed in the middle of the night?” Hanji inquired in a gentle voice, seeing all to well from Levi’s worried stare, that nothing pleasant could have been on his mind.

Knowing there was no point, or even need to keep any secrets from his dear friend, Levi briefly recounted the turbulent happenings of the past few days, strategically leaving out the parts that were definitely none of Hanji’s business, or the parts where he behaved like a total jerk and also the ones where his mind seemed to be bewitched by deep emeralds belonging to a certain idiot, times where he behaved completely unlike himself. Come to think of it, this whole ordeal was unlike himself.

“Everything we did up until now was the wrong move.” Levi admitted. “And I can’t see us stopping with these terrible decisions anytime soon. Not with him disrupting my common sense like this. I...” He sighed, squinting, “I have no plan for us...”

 “Maybe...” Hanji started, but a sharp voice interrupted.

“He does not have a plan either...” It said, and there was a tinge of frustration in it. “ I am still not sure he had even fully grasped the severity of our position.”

“...You should trust him.” A kinder voice, finished the previously intended sentence. “You are not alone Levi, why do you keep forgetting that?” Turning around Hanji disrupted their carefully maintained balance, but has caught the stubborn man by the cheeks before he could topple forward. “It says nowhere that you have to carry the burden of everybodies troubles...Hell...You should not carry your own by yourself either.” They spoke, squeezing Levi’s face between their palms. “He may be a careless, spoiled merman, but  from what you have told me, he has a heart of a shark.” Hanji said, dramatically tapping her fist to her chest, and silver eyes would have rolled at the cheesy comparison, if it weren’t completely true. When it came to the two of them, Levi knew he could count on that fool to move some mountains if needed. Maybe even a wall or two. All for Levi. He truly didn’t deserve that. “Trust eh?” He said, raising an eyebrow, and mumbling a little, Hanji still having his cheeks all puffed up, between their hands. _Trust_ , maybe that wasn’t such a bad idea.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter was almost completely inspired by this song [Elisa - Come speak to me (4hero radio edit)](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8VfeL_arCgQ)

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you so much for reading!  
> If you have a little time I would love to hear some feedback about how I'm doing so far?  
> You can leave kudos if you liked it (it's like giving me a pat on the back ❁) Hope you continue to enjoy the fic ^^


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